The Identification and Conservation of Tunicaminyluracil-Related Biosynthetic Gene Clusters in Several Species Collected From Australia, Africa, Eurasia, and North America.

Tunicaminyluracil antibiotics are a novel class of toxigenic glycolipids that are synthesized by several soil-associated . The acquisition of a tunicaminyluracil biosynthetic gene cluster (TGC) in has led to the emergence of the only described, naturally occurring tunicaminyluracil-associated mammalian disease, annual ryegrass toxicity of livestock. Endemic to Australia, is obligately vectored by Anguinid seed gall nematodes to the developing seedheads of forage grasses, in which the bacteria synthesize tunicaminyluracils that may subsequently be consumed by livestock and result in high rates of mortality and morbidity.

Partial Proteome of the Corynetoxin-Producing Gram-Positive Bacterium, Rathayibacter toxicus.

Rathayibacter toxicus is a Gram-positive bacterium that is the causative agent of annual ryegrass toxicity (ARGT), a disease that causes devastating losses in the Australian livestock industry. R. toxicus exhibits a complex life cycle, using the nematode Anguina funesta as a physical vector to carry it up to the seed head of the host plant.

Complete Genome Sequence of Phage NCPPB3778.

The phage NCPPB3778 was isolated from strain CS14, and the genomic DNA was sequenced. The genome is similar to siphoviruses, consisting of 44,520 bases including 77 predicted open reading frames. Portions of the genome are annotated as typical phage proteins, but much of the genome sequence is unique from other bacteriophages.

Whole genome sequence of two Rathayibacter toxicus strains reveals a tunicamycin biosynthetic cluster similar to Streptomyces chartreusis.

Rathayibacter toxicus is a forage grass associated Gram-positive bacterium of major concern to food safety and agriculture. This species is listed by USDA-APHIS as a plant pathogen select agent because it produces a tunicamycin-like toxin that is lethal to livestock and may be vectored by nematode species native to the U.S.