AT Homopolymer Strings in Subspecies I Contribute to Speciation and Serovar Diversity.

Adenine and thymine homopolymer strings of at least 8 nucleotides (AT 8+mers) were characterized in subspecies I. The motif differed between other taxonomic classes but not between serovars. The motif in plasmids was possibly associated with serovar. Approximately 12.3% of the motif loci had mutations. Mutability of AT 8+mers suggests that genomes undergo frequent repair to maintain optimal gene content, and that the motif facilitates self-recognition; in addition, serovar diversity is associated with plasmid content. A theory that genome regeneration accounts for both persistence of predominant serovars and serovar diversity provides a new framework for investigating root causes of foodborne illness.