To Feed or to Stick? Genomic Analysis Offers Clues for the Role of a Molecular Machine in Endospore Formers.

Sporulation in starts with the formation of two adjacent cells and proceeds with the engulfment of the smaller one, the forespore, by the larger one, the mother cell. This critical step involves a core set of conserved genes, some transcribed in the forespore, such as , and others transcribed in the mother cell, such as the eight-gene operon. A model has been proposed in which the SpoIIIA and the SpoIIQ proteins form a channel connecting the mother cell and the forespore, playing the role of a secretion apparatus allowing the mother cell to nurture the fully engulfed forespore.

Multiple Locus Variable number of tandem repeat Analysis: A molecular genotyping tool for Paenibacillus larvae.

American Foulbrood, caused by Paenibacillus larvae, is the most severe bacterial disease of honey bees (Apis mellifera). To perform genotyping of P. larvae in an epidemiological context, there is a need of a fast and cheap method with a high resolution.

Analysis of cbbL, nifH, and pufLM in Soils from the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica, Reveals a Large Diversity of Autotrophic and Phototrophic Bacteria.

Cyanobacteria are generally thought to be responsible for primary production and nitrogen fixation in the microbial communities that dominate Antarctic ecosystems. Recent studies of bacterial communities in terrestrial Antarctica, however, have shown that Cyanobacteria are sometimes only scarcely present, suggesting that other bacteria presumably take over their role as primary producers and diazotrophs. The diversity of key genes in these processes was studied in surface samples from the Sør Rondane Mountains, Dronning Maud Land, using clone libraries of the large subunit of ribulose-1,5-biphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO) genes (cbbL, cbbM) and dinitrogenase-reductase (nifH) genes.

Comparative genome analysis of Pediococcus damnosus LMG 28219, a strain well-adapted to the beer environment.

Background: Pediococcus damnosus LMG 28219 is a lactic acid bacterium dominating the maturation phase of Flemish acid beer productions. It proved to be capable of growing in beer, thereby resisting this environment, which is unfavorable for microbial growth. The molecular mechanisms underlying its metabolic capabilities and niche adaptations were unknown up to now.

Draft Genome Sequence of Pseudomonas sp. nov. H2.

We report the draft genome sequence of Pseudomonas sp. nov. H2, isolated from creek sediment in Moscow, ID, USA.

Comparative genome analysis of pathogenic and non-pathogenic Clavibacter strains reveals adaptations to their lifestyle.

Background: The genus Clavibacter harbors economically important plant pathogens infecting agricultural crops such as potato and tomato. Although the vast majority of Clavibacter strains are pathogenic, there is an increasing number of non-pathogenic isolates reported. Non-pathogenic Clavibacter strains isolated from tomato seeds are particularly problematic because they affect the current detection and identification tests for Clavibacter michiganensis subsp.

Draft Genome Sequence of Pseudomonas moraviensis R28-S.

We report the draft genome sequence of Pseudomonas moraviensis R28-S, isolated from the municipal wastewater treatment plant of Moscow, ID. The strain carries a native mercury resistance plasmid, poorly maintains introduced IncP-1 antibiotic resistance plasmids, and has been useful for studying the evolution of plasmid host range and stability.

Genetic diversity of non-pathogenic Clavibacter strains isolated from tomato seeds.

Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis (Cmm) is a seed-transmitted, quarantine pathogen which causes bacterial wilt and canker of tomato. Despite efforts to prevent seed contamination, new introductions are regularly detected, associated with new regions of tomato seed production.

Multilocus variable-number-tandem-repeats analysis (MLVA) distinguishes a clonal complex of Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis strains isolated from recent outbreaks of bacterial wilt and canker in Belgium.

Background: Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis (Cmm) causes bacterial wilt and canker in tomato. Cmm is present nearly in all European countries.

Usefulness of the European Epidemic Intelligence Information System in the management of an outbreak of listeriosis, Belgium, 2011.

A cluster of time-linked cases and the identification of a clonal strain suggest the occurrence of an outbreak of listeriosis in Belgium in 2011, presumably due to the consumption of hard cheese made with pasteurised milk and produced by a Belgium manufacturer. The outbreak clone was identified as Listeria monocytogenes serovar 1/2a, sensitive to arsenic and cadmium and of multilocus sequence typing MLST-type 37. Food investigation of this outbreak was facilitated by the European Epidemic Intelligence Information System and data exchanged between French and Belgium listeriosis surveillance systems.

Genetic diversity and population structure of Mycobacterium marinum: new insights into host and environmental specificities.

Mycobacterium marinum causes a systemic tuberculosis-like disease in fish and skin infections in humans that can spread to deeper structures, resulting in tenosynovitis, arthritis, and osteomyelitis. However, little information is available concerning (i) the intraspecific genetic diversity of M. marinum isolated from humans and animals; (ii) M.

CsfG, a sporulation-specific, small non-coding RNA highly conserved in endospore formers.

Endospore formation is a characteristic shared by some Bacilli and Clostridia that involves the creation of two cell types, the forespore and the mother cell. Hundreds of protein-encoding genes have been shown to be transcribed in a cell-specific fashion during this developmental process in Bacillus subtilis. We have used a phylogenetic profiling procedure to identify clusters of B.

Do mycobacteria produce endospores?

The genus Mycobacterium, which is a member of the high G+C group of Gram-positive bacteria, includes important pathogens, such as M. tuberculosis and M. leprae.

Buruli ulcer in United Kingdom tourist returning from Latin America.

We report a case of Buruli ulcer in a tourist from the United Kingdom. The disease was almost certainly acquired in Brazil, where only 1 case had previously been reported. The delay in diagnosis highlights the need for physicians to be aware of the disease and its epidemiology.

Persistence of Mycobacterium ulcerans disease (Buruli Ulcer) in the historical focus of Kasongo Territory, the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Fifty years after the last report of Mycobacterium ulcerans infections (Buruli ulcer [BU]) in Kasongo Territory, Maniema Province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), we conducted a small-scale cross-sectional survey to assess if this historical BU focus was still active and if so to explore the disease epidemiology. Seventy-five active and inactive BU cases were identified on clinical grounds of which two of 28 BU active cases were laboratory confirmed. We used a modified BU02 form to reconstruct the local disease dynamics and we believe that the horrific conflict in eastern DRC and exceptional flooding were the most likely causes of the re-emergence of the disease.

Genetic dissection of an inhibitor of the sporulation sigma factor sigma(G).

Sporulation in Bacillus subtilis is controlled by a cascade of four sigma factors that are held into inactive form until the proper stage of development. The Gin protein, encoded by csfB, is able to strongly inhibit the activity of one of these factors, sigma(G), in vivo. The csfB gene is present in a large number of endospore formers, but the various Gin orthologues show little conservation, in striking contrast to their sigma(G) counterparts.

A comparison of DNA extraction procedures for the detection of Mycobacterium ulcerans, the causative agent of Buruli ulcer, in clinical and environmental specimens.

Mycobacterium ulcerans is the causative agent of Buruli ulcer, the third most common mycobacterial disease in humans after tuberculosis and leprosy. Although the disease is associated with aquatic ecosystems, cultivation of the bacillus from the environment is difficult to achieve. Therefore, at the moment, research is based on the detection by PCR of the insertion sequence IS2404 present in M.

First report of a mycolactone-producing Mycobacterium infection in fish agriculture in Belgium.

In the past few years, a mycolactone-producing subgroup of the Mycobacterium marinum complex has been identified and analyzed. These IS2404-positive species cause pathology in frogs and fish. A recently isolated mycobacterial strain from a fish in Belgium was analyzed using a variety of molecular methods and the results were identical to those obtained from a mycolactone-producing M.

[Follow-up of the first case of Mycobacterium ulcerans infection documented by PCR, genotyping and culture in the Republic of Congo-Brazzaville].

This article presents follow-up data from the first patient in whom Mycobacterium ulcerans infection (MUI) was documented by PCR, genotyping and culture in the Republic of Congo-Brazzaville. Findings show the importance of regular clinical and microbiological evaluation for the disseminated form of the disease. The patient was probably infected in Pointe Noire where MUI has been described but never documented.

Lysine represses transcription of the Escherichia coli dapB gene by preventing its activation by the ArgP activator.

The Escherichia coli dapB gene encodes one of the enzymes of the biosynthetic pathway leading to lysine and its immediate precursor, diaminopimelate. Expression of dapB is repressed by lysine, but no trans-acting regulator has been identified so far. Our analysis of the dapB regulatory region shows that sequences located in the -81/-118 interval upstream of the transcription start site are essential for full expression of dapB, as well as for lysine repression.

First cultivation and characterization of Mycobacterium ulcerans from the environment.

Background: Mycobacterium ulcerans disease, or Buruli ulcer (BU), is an indolent, necrotizing infection of skin, subcutaneous tissue and, occasionally, bones. It is the third most common human mycobacteriosis worldwide, after tuberculosis and leprosy. There is evidence that M.

How the early sporulation sigma factor sigmaF delays the switch to late development in Bacillus subtilis.

Sporulation in Bacillus subtilis is a primitive differentiation process involving two cell types, the forespore and the mother cell. Each cell implements two successive transcription programmes controlled by specific sigma factors. We report that activity of sigma(G), the late forespore sigma factor, is kept in check by Gin, the product of csfB, a gene controlled by sigma(F), the early forespore sigma factor.

VNTR analysis differentiates Mycobacterium ulcerans and IS2404 positive mycobacteria.

In recent years, numerous IS2404 positive mycobacteria have been identified, compromising the detection of Mycobacterium ulcerans. In this study, variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR) analysis was successfully applied on cultures and tissue specimens to differentiate all currently known IS2404 positive mycobacteria from M. ulcerans.

Mycobacterium liflandii infection in European colony of Silurana tropicalis.

Mycobacterium liflandii causes a fatal frog disease in captive anurans. Here we report, to our knowledge, the first epizootic of mycobacteriosis in a European colony of clawed frogs (Silurana tropicalis), previously imported from a United States biologic supply company. Our findings suggest the emerging potential of this infection through international trade.

Identification of a new variable number tandem repeat locus in Mycobacterium ulcerans for potential strain discrimination among African isolates.

Intra-species discrimination in the highly clonal pathogen Mycobacterium ulcerans was studied in a diverse collection of isolates by PCR amplification of a short sequence repeat locus containing heterogeneous arrays of tri-nucleotide repeats with an ACC consensus pattern. Post-amplification analysis indicated excellent typeability and identified five M. ulcerans alleles, including a unique Angolan type differentiated for the first time among a genetically conserved cluster of African isolates.