1
|
Sousa AIDJ, Galvão CC, Pires PS, Salvarani FM. Blackleg: A Review of the Agent and Management of the Disease in Brazil. Animals (Basel) 2024; 14:638. [PMID: 38396606 PMCID: PMC10886055 DOI: 10.3390/ani14040638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
The genus Clostridium is an important group of pathogenic and nonpathogenic Gram-positive anaerobic bacteria with a sporulation capacity and wide distribution in different environments, including the gastrointestinal tracts of healthy and diseased animals and humans. Among the pathogenic species of the genus, Clostridium chauvoei stands out as a histotoxic agent. It causes significant myonecrosis such as blackleg, a disease with high lethality, especially in young cattle, and is responsible for significant livestock losses worldwide. The pathogenicity of the disease is complex and has not yet been fully elucidated. Current hypotheses cover processes from the initial absorption to the transport and deposition of the agent in the affected tissues. The virulence factors of C. chauvoei have been divided into somatic and flagellar antigens and soluble antigens/toxins, which are the main antigens used in vaccines against blackleg in Brazil and worldwide. This review provides important information on the first and current approaches to the agent C. chauvoei and its virulence factors as well as a compilation of data on Brazilian studies related to blackleg.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Cleideanny Cancela Galvão
- Centro de Desenvolvimento Tecnológico, Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Pelotas 96010-900, RS, Brazil;
| | | | - Felipe Masiero Salvarani
- Instituto de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Federal do Pará, Castanhal 68740-970, PA, Brazil;
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Ko MS, Gulholm T, Yastrebov K. Human Clostridium chauvoei necrotising enterocolitis. Med J Aust 2023; 219:348-349. [PMID: 37587611 DOI: 10.5694/mja2.52078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Revised: 05/29/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 08/18/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Myung Seo Ko
- Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, NSW
- Prince of Wales Hospital and Community Health Services, Sydney, NSW
| | - Trine Gulholm
- Prince of Wales Hospital and Community Health Services, Sydney, NSW
- University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW
| | - Konstantin Yastrebov
- Prince of Wales Hospital and Community Health Services, Sydney, NSW
- University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW
- University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Li W, Li H, Wang S, Han K, Liu Y, An Z, Wu H, Li J, Song J, Wu W. Regional pattern and signatures of gut microbiota in rural residents with coronary heart disease: A metagenomic analysis. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2022; 12:1007161. [PMID: 36519129 PMCID: PMC9742380 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2022.1007161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Coronary heart disease (CHD) is tightly associated with gut microbiota, but microbiota heterogeneity limits the application of microbial biomarkers and personalized interventions demand regional-specific features. The purpose of this study was to comprehensively characterize the regional pattern of gut microbiota in rural residents with CHD and assess the predictive value and clinical correlations of local microbial signatures. We profiled the gut microbiota by shotgun metagenomic sequencing from 19 CHD and 19 healthy residents in rural Xinxiang, China, and tested the physiological parameters. The results indicated that microbial diversity, as well as KEGG orthology (KO) and carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) functions, deserved no significant disparities between CHD and healthy residents. The relative abundance of Bacteroidetes phylum was significantly lower and unclassified Lachnospiraceae genus, and Eubacterium rectale species were markedly higher in CHD residents compared with the healthy control. Co-occurrence network revealed a more diverse and scattered ecology in CHD residents. LEfSe identified 39 potential biomarkers and butanoate metabolism and glycosyltransferases families were the enhanced KO and CAZymes in CHD residents, respectively. Twenty key signatures were determined by the random forest algorithm and most of them belonged to the Clostridium cluster. These key signatures harbored a superior accuracy of 83.9% to distinguish CHD and healthy residents and, fasting serum insulin, diastolic blood pressure, and body mass index were the top three clinical parameters influencing the gut bacterial community. Furthermore, we also found that low-density lipoprotein and waist circumference had significantly positive correlations with the members of the Clostridium cluster. These findings expand our knowledge in the regional-specific pattern of gut microbiota for rural CHD residents and highlight the non-invasive diagnostic value and clinical correlations of microbial signatures.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Wenlong Li
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China,Institute of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, Zhengzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Zhengzhou, Henan, China
| | - Huijun Li
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Shaolan Wang
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Keyang Han
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Yuan Liu
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Zhen An
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Hui Wu
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Juan Li
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Jie Song
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Weidong Wu
- School of Public Health, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China,*Correspondence: Weidong Wu,
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Cáceres CS, Gallo GL, Colocho FA, Silva JE, Garay JA, Mattar Domínguez MA. Vegetative forms of Clostridium chauvoei trigger apoptotic and inflammatory responses on macrophages. Anaerobe 2022; 77:102616. [PMID: 35931287 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2022.102616] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2021] [Revised: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Clostridium chauvoei is a gram-positive, spore-forming, strictly anaerobic bacterium that causes blackleg, a disease that affects cattle by inducing fulminant myonecrosis, thereby leading to high and constant losses of cattle. Macrophages (Mɸs) are depleted in tissues infected with the vegetative form of C. chauvoei, but the mechanism remains partially known. Consequently, Mɸs may be a critical target in the pathogenicity of C. chauvoei. AIM The objective of this work was to study the mechanism of death of mouse-primary Mɸs infected in vitro for 24 h with the vegetative form of C. chauvoei. METHODS Mouse peritoneal Mɸs were infected in vitro with different multiplicities of infection (MOIs) of C. chauvoei (i.e., 5:1, 20:1, and 100:1). After 24 h post-infection, cell viability (MTT reduction assay), apoptosis (apoptotic bodies, DNA ladder, and Annexin V assays), and inflammatory cell response (iNOS and TNF-α expression) were assessed. RESULTS All the MOIs investigated decreased cell viability. An MOI of 20:1 caused the highest production of apoptotic bodies and an electrophoretic DNA-ladder pattern typical of an apoptosis cell death process. These results were corroborated using the Annexin V-flow cytometry assay. Concurrently with apoptotic cell death, Mϕs expressed iNOS and TNF-α. CONCLUSION Inflammation-mediated apoptosis of Mϕs can be a potential mechanism of evasion of the immune response used by C. chauvoei in tissues for depleting phagocytic cells at the site of infection.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudia S Cáceres
- Laboratorio de Microbiología e Inmunología, Facultad de Química Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, 5700, San Luis, Argentina.
| | - Giovanna L Gallo
- Laboratorio de Microbiología e Inmunología, Facultad de Química Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, 5700, San Luis, Argentina; Centro de Virología Animal, CEVAN-CONICET, Universidad Abierta Interamericana, Ciudad, Autónoma de Buenos Aires, 1405 CABA, Argentina.
| | - Florencia A Colocho
- Laboratorio de Microbiología e Inmunología, Facultad de Química Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, 5700, San Luis, Argentina.
| | - Juan E Silva
- Laboratorio de Microbiología e Inmunología, Facultad de Química Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, 5700, San Luis, Argentina; Laboratorio de Inmunopatología y Citometría de Flujo, IMIBIO-CONICET, San Luis, 5700, San Luis, Argentina.
| | - Juan A Garay
- Laboratorio de Microbiología e Inmunología, Facultad de Química Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, 5700, San Luis, Argentina.
| | - María A Mattar Domínguez
- Laboratorio de Microbiología e Inmunología, Facultad de Química Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, 5700, San Luis, Argentina.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Prajapati A, Yogisharadhya R, Mohanty NN, Mendem SK, Nizamuddin A, Chanda MM, Shivachandra SB. Whole-genome sequence analysis of Clostridium chauvoei isolated from clinical case of black quarter (BQ) from India. Arch Microbiol 2022; 204:328. [PMID: 35576020 DOI: 10.1007/s00203-022-02924-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Revised: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 04/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Black quarter (BQ) is an infectious disease affecting cattle and small ruminants worldwide caused by Gram-positive anaerobic bacterium Clostridium chauvoei. In this study, a draft genome sequence of C. chauvoei NIVEDIBQ1 strain isolated from clinical case of black quarter was analyzed. Sequence analysis indicated that genome had 2653 predicted coding DNA sequences, harbored numerous genes, mobile genetic elements for pathogenesis, and virulence factors. Computational analysis revealed that strain contained 30 virulence-associated genes. An intact genomic region highly similar to the Clostridium phage was present in the genome. Presence of CRISPR systems and the transposon components likely contribute to the genome plasticity. Strain encode diverse spectrum of degradative carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes). Comparative SNP analysis revealed that the genomes of the C. chauvoei strains analyzed were highly conserved. Phylogenetic analysis of strains and available genome (n = 21) based on whole-genome multi-locus sequence typing (wgMLST) and core orthologous genes showed the clustering of strains into two different clusters suggesting geographical links.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Awadhesh Prajapati
- ICAR-National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics (NIVEDI), Yelahanka, Karnataka, 560064, Bengaluru, India
| | - Revanaiah Yogisharadhya
- ICAR-National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics (NIVEDI), Yelahanka, Karnataka, 560064, Bengaluru, India
| | - Nihar Nalini Mohanty
- CCS-National Institute of Animal Health (NIAH), Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh, 250609, India
| | - Suresh Kumar Mendem
- ICAR-National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics (NIVEDI), Yelahanka, Karnataka, 560064, Bengaluru, India
| | - Azharuddin Nizamuddin
- Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services, State Semen Collection Centre, Hessarghatta, Bengaluru, Karnataka, 560089, India
| | - Mohammed Mudassar Chanda
- ICAR-National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics (NIVEDI), Yelahanka, Karnataka, 560064, Bengaluru, India
| | - Sathish Bhadravati Shivachandra
- ICAR-National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics (NIVEDI), Yelahanka, Karnataka, 560064, Bengaluru, India.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Blokhin AA, Toropova NN, Burova OA, Iashin IV, Zakharova OI. Blackleg in Cattle in the Irkutsk Region. Front Vet Sci 2022; 9:872386. [PMID: 35647103 PMCID: PMC9133737 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2022.872386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Blackleg is an acute, toxic, infectious, non-contagious disease of domestic and wild ruminants that occurs while the animals are pastured. This article describes an outbreak of blackleg on a farm in Siberia (Russia) in 2019. We provide a detailed description of the cases based on the results of comprehensive diagnostic and epidemiological investigations. For description of case and evaluation, we used the following methods: owner observations, descriptive epidemiology, clinical diagnostics, pathological examination and bacteriology. The distinctive features (in addition to the characteristic features) were as follows: the outbreak of the disease occurred in early spring when there was abundant snow cover and under unfavorable living conditions of animals and traumas; the disease appeared in both vaccinated and unvaccinated cattle; the characteristic clinical signs were low-grade fever, the absence of crepitus, and the presence of haematomas containing erythrocytes with basophilic granularity; thrombs in vessel and vacuolization in tissue of the adrenal gland. This paper aimed to present classical and new clinical and pathology changes in cattle with blackleg in winter conditions of Russian Siberia.
Collapse
|
7
|
Thomas P, Abdel-Glil MY, Subbaiyan A, Busch A, Eichhorn I, Wieler LH, Neubauer H, Pletz M, Seyboldt C. First Comparative Analysis of Clostridium septicum Genomes Provides Insights Into the Taxonomy, Species Genetic Diversity, and Virulence Related to Gas Gangrene. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:771945. [PMID: 34956133 PMCID: PMC8696124 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.771945] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Clostridium septicum is a Gram-positive, toxin-producing, and spore-forming bacterium that is recognized, together with C. perfringens, as the most important etiologic agent of progressive gas gangrene. Clostridium septicum infections are almost always fatal in humans and animals. Despite its clinical and agricultural relevance, there is currently limited knowledge of the diversity and genome structure of C. septicum. This study presents the complete genome sequence of C. septicum DSM 7534T type strain as well as the first comparative analysis of five C. septicum genomes. The taxonomy of C. septicum, as revealed by 16S rRNA analysis as well as by genomic wide indices such as protein-based phylogeny, average nucleotide identity, and digital DNA–DNA hybridization indicates a stable clade. The composition and presence of prophages, CRISPR elements and accessory genetic material was variable in the investigated genomes. This is in contrast to the limited genetic variability described for the phylogenetically and phenotypically related species Clostridium chauvoei. The restriction-modification (RM) systems between two C. septicum genomes were heterogeneous for the RM types they encoded. C. septicum has an open pangenome with 2,311 genes representing the core genes and 1,429 accessory genes. The core genome SNP divergence between genome pairs varied up to 4,886 pairwise SNPs. A vast arsenal of potential virulence genes was detected in the genomes studied. Sequence analysis of these genes revealed that sialidase, hemolysin, and collagenase genes are conserved compared to the α-toxin and hyaluronidase genes. In addition, a conserved gene found in all C. septicum genomes was predicted to encode a leucocidin homolog (beta-channel forming cytolysin) similar (71.10% protein identity) to Clostridium chauvoei toxin A (CctA), which is a potent toxin. In conclusion, our results provide first, valuable insights into strain relatedness and genomic plasticity of C. septicum and contribute to our understanding of the virulence mechanisms of this important human and animal pathogen.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Prasad Thomas
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, India
| | - Mostafa Y. Abdel-Glil
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
- Institute for Infectious Diseases and Infection Control, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt
- *Correspondence: Mostafa Y. Abdel-Glil,
| | - Anbazhagan Subbaiyan
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, India
| | - Anne Busch
- Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Inga Eichhorn
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Microbiology and Epizootics, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lothar H. Wieler
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Microbiology and Epizootics, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany
| | - Heinrich Neubauer
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Mathias Pletz
- Institute for Infectious Diseases and Infection Control, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany
| | - Christian Seyboldt
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Thomas P, Abdel-Glil MY, Eichhorn I, Semmler T, Werckenthin C, Baumbach C, Murmann W, Bodenthin-Drauschke A, Zimmermann P, Schotte U, Galante D, Slavic D, Wagner M, Wieler LH, Neubauer H, Seyboldt C. Genome Sequence Analysis of Clostridium chauvoei Strains of European Origin and Evaluation of Typing Options for Outbreak Investigations. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:732106. [PMID: 34659160 PMCID: PMC8513740 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.732106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Black quarter caused by Clostridium (C.) chauvoei is an important bacterial disease that affects cattle and sheep with high mortality. A comparative genomics analysis of 64 C. chauvoei strains, most of European origin and a few of non-European and unknown origin, was performed. The pangenome analysis showed limited new gene acquisition for the species. The accessory genome involved prophages and genomic islands, with variations in gene composition observed in a few strains. This limited accessory genome may indicate that the species replicates only in the host or that an active CRISPR/Cas system provides immunity to foreign genetic elements. All strains contained a CRISPR type I-B system and it was confirmed that the unique spacer sequences therein can be used to differentiate strains. Homologous recombination events, which may have contributed to the evolution of this pathogen, were less frequent compared to other related species from the genus. Pangenome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) based phylogeny and clustering indicate diverse clusters related to geographical origin. Interestingly the identified SNPs were mostly non-synonymous. The study demonstrates the possibility of the existence of polymorphic populations in one host, based on strain variability observed for strains from the same animal and strains from different animals of one outbreak. The study also demonstrates that new outbreak strains are mostly related to earlier outbreak strains from the same farm/region. This indicates the last common ancestor strain from one farm can be crucial to understand the genetic changes and epidemiology occurring at farm level. Known virulence factors for the species were highly conserved among the strains. Genetic elements involved in Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) precursor synthesis (via nadA, nadB, and nadC metabolic pathway) which are known as potential anti-virulence loci are completely absent in C. chauvoei compared to the partial inactivation in C. septicum. A novel core-genome MLST based typing method was compared to sequence typing based on CRISPR spacers to evaluate the usefulness of the methods for outbreak investigations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Prasad Thomas
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Mostafa Y Abdel-Glil
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Inga Eichhorn
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Microbiology and Epizootics, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Christiane Werckenthin
- Lower Saxony State Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety (LAVES), Food and Veterinary Institute Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
| | - Christina Baumbach
- State Office for Agriculture, Food Safety and Fisheries Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Rostock, Germany
| | - Wybke Murmann
- Chemical and Veterinary Investigations Office, Freiburg, Germany
| | | | - Pia Zimmermann
- Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority (LGL), Laboratory of Food Microbiology, Oberschleißheim, Germany
| | - Ulrich Schotte
- Department A-Veterinary Medicine, Central Institute of the Bundeswehr Medical Service Kiel, Kronshagen, Germany
| | - Domenico Galante
- Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Puglia e della Basilicata, Foggia, Italy
| | - Durda Slavic
- Animal Health Laboratory, Laboratory Services Division, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
| | - Martin Wagner
- Unit for Food Microbiology, Institute for Food Safety, Technology and Veterinary Public Health, University for Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Heinrich Neubauer
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Christian Seyboldt
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Computational Design of a Multi-epitope Vaccine Against Clostridium chauvoei: An Immunoinformatics Approach. Int J Pept Res Ther 2021; 27:2639-2649. [PMID: 34493934 PMCID: PMC8414032 DOI: 10.1007/s10989-021-10279-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/27/2021] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
Abstract
Blackleg is an infectious disease of animals that is commonly caused by Clostridium chauvoei and characterized by localized muscle necrosis. In this study, proteome-mining and immunoinformatics approaches were applied to identify novel antigenic proteins and to construct a multi-epitope vaccine against C. chauvoei. All proteins of C. chauvoei strains were retrieved from the NCBI Microbial Genome Database containing both genomic and proteomic data of prokaryotes. The proteins were analyzed to exclude non-redundant sequences and to determine antigenic, virulent, and non-allergenic vaccine candidates through several online tools, resulting in seven protein candidates. Cytotoxic T and B cell epitopes of these proteins were evaluated through the tools present in the immune epitope database and the prioritized antigenic epitopes were then conjugated via appropriate linkers to construct the vaccine candidate. After the evaluation of physicochemical properties of the construct, the tertiary structure was modeled and refined through trRosetta and GalaxyRefine, respectively. The quality of the 3D structure was validated by ERRAT score, z-score, and Ramachandran plot and the construct was then docked with bovine Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR 4) using ClusPro. The docked complex was subjected to Molecular Mechanics/Generalized Born Surface Area in the HawkDock server and normal mode analysis in the iMODS simulation suite to assess the binding energy and stability of the complex, respectively. Overall, the vaccine construct was found stable and energetically feasible for bovine TLR 4 binding. Therefore, it can be used as a multi-epitope vaccine construct in clostridial vaccines to control the blackleg disease. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10989-021-10279-9.
Collapse
|
10
|
Richter V, Roch FF, Knauss M, Hiesel J, Wolf R, Wagner P, Käsbohrer A, Conrady B. Animal-related factors predicting fatal cases of blackleg and gas gangrene in cattle. Vet Rec 2021; 189:e558. [PMID: 34109648 DOI: 10.1002/vetr.558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2020] [Revised: 03/26/2021] [Accepted: 05/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Blackleg and gas gangrene are acute clostridial infections primarily affecting cattle. The objectives of this study were to identify (i) animal-related factors influencing the occurrence and (ii) prognostic pathological findings supporting the differentiation of fatal blackleg and gas gangrene cases in the cattle population from 1998 to 2018 in Styria, Austria. METHODS Two binomial logistic models were applied to analyse the research questions. Additionally, cross-validations were performed to estimate the accuracy of the predictive models. RESULTS Model results show that animal-related factors (i.e., age, geographical discovery location of dead cattle, vaccination status) significantly influence the occurrence of blackleg when compared to gas gangrene. Pathological findings are similar for both diseases. CONCLUSIONS Model results reveal that using animal-related factors has a better accuracy to predict the fatal cases caused by both pathogens. Thus, the authors recommend not relying on pathological findings as predictive factors in the differentiation between blackleg and gas gangrene in cattle.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Richter
- Unit of Veterinary Public Health and Epidemiology, Institute of Food Safety, Food Technology and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria.,Amt der Steiermärkischen Landesregierung, Fachabteilung Gesundheit und Pflegemanagement, Graz, Austria
| | - Franz-Ferdinand Roch
- Unit of Veterinary Public Health and Epidemiology, Institute of Food Safety, Food Technology and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Marlena Knauss
- Bezirkshauptmannschaft Liezen, Politische Expositur Gröbming, Gröbming, Austria.,Department of Production Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Jörg Hiesel
- Amt der Steiermärkischen Landesregierung, Fachabteilung Gesundheit und Pflegemanagement, Graz, Austria
| | - Robert Wolf
- Amt der Steiermärkischen Landesregierung, Fachabteilung Gesundheit und Pflegemanagement, Graz, Austria
| | - Peter Wagner
- Amt der Steiermärkischen Landesregierung, Fachabteilung Gesundheit und Pflegemanagement, Graz, Austria
| | - Annemarie Käsbohrer
- Unit of Veterinary Public Health and Epidemiology, Institute of Food Safety, Food Technology and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Beate Conrady
- Unit of Veterinary Public Health and Epidemiology, Institute of Food Safety, Food Technology and Veterinary Public Health, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria.,Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C, Denmark.,Complexity Science Hub Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Busch A, Homeier-Bachmann T, Abdel-Glil MY, Hackbart A, Hotzel H, Tomaso H. Using affinity propagation clustering for identifying bacterial clades and subclades with whole-genome sequences of Francisella tularensis. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2020; 14:e0008018. [PMID: 32991594 PMCID: PMC7523947 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0008018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2019] [Accepted: 12/27/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
By combining a reference-independent SNP analysis and average nucleotide identity (ANI) with affinity propagation clustering (APC), we developed a significantly improved methodology allowing resolving phylogenetic relationships, based on objective criteria. These bioinformatics tools can be used as a general ruler to determine phylogenetic relationships and clustering of bacteria, exemplary done with Francisella (F.) tularensis. Molecular epidemiology of F. tularensis is currently assessed mostly based on laboratory methods and molecular analysis. The high evolutionary stability and the clonal nature makes Francisella ideal for subtyping with single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Sequencing and real-time PCR can be used to validate the SNP analysis. We investigate whole-genome sequences of 155 F. tularensis subsp. holarctica isolates. Phylogenetic testing was based on SNPs and average nucleotide identity (ANI) as reference independent, alignment-free methods taking small-scale and large-scale differences within the genomes into account. Especially the whole genome SNP analysis with kSNP3.0 allowed deciphering quite subtle signals of systematic differences in molecular variation. Affinity propagation clustering (APC) resulted in three clusters showing the known clades B.4, B.6, and B.12. These data correlated with the results of real-time PCR assays targeting canSNPs loci. Additionally, we detected two subtle sub-clusters. SplitsTree was used with standard-setting using the aligned SNPs from Parsnps. Together APC, HierBAPS, and SplitsTree enabled us to generate hypotheses about epidemiologic relationships between bacterial clusters and describing the distribution of isolates. Our data indicate that the choice of the typing technique can increase our understanding of the pathogenesis and transmission of diseases with the eventual for prevention. This is opening perspectives to be applied to other bacterial species. The data provide evidence that Germany might be the collision zone where the clade B.12, also known as the East European clade, overlaps with the clade B.6, also known as the Iberian clade. Described methods allow generating a new, more detailed perspective for F. tularensis subsp. holarctica phylogeny. These results may encourage to determine phylogenetic relationships and clustering of other bacteria the same way.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anne Busch
- Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Timo Homeier-Bachmann
- Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Institute of Epidemiology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany
| | - Mostafa Y. Abdel-Glil
- Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Anja Hackbart
- Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Helmut Hotzel
- Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Herbert Tomaso
- Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Abstract
Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) are a growing global health threat. The Stockholm Paradigm suggests that their toll will grow tragically in the face of climate change, in particular. The best research protocol for predicting and preventing infectious disease emergence states that an urgent search must commence to identify unknown human and animal pathogens. This short communication proposes that the ethnobiological knowledge of indigenous and impoverished communities can be a source of information about some of those unknown pathogens. I present the ecological and anthropological theory behind this proposal, followed by a few case studies that serve as a limited proof of concept. This paper also serves as a call to action for the medical anthropology community. It gives a brief primer on the EID crisis and how anthropology research may be vital to limiting its havoc on global health. Local knowledge is not likely to play a major role in EID research initiatives, but the incorporation of an awareness of EIDs into standard medical anthropological practice would have myriad other benefits.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hampton Gray Gaddy
- Institute of Human Sciences, University of Oxford, 58a Banbury Rd, Oxford, OX2 6QS, United Kingdom.
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Abstract
Whole-genome sequences are now available for all the clinically important clostridia and many of the lesser or opportunistically pathogenic clostridia. The complex clade structures of C. difficile, C. perfringens, and the species that produce botulinum toxins have been delineated by whole-genome sequence analysis. The true clostridia of cluster I show relatively low levels of gross genomic rearrangements within species, in contrast to the species of cluster XI, notably C. difficile, which have been found to have very plastic genomes with significant levels of chromosomal rearrangement. Throughout the clostridial phylotypes, a large proportion of the strain diversity is driven by the acquisition and loss of mobile elements, including phages, plasmids, insertion sequences, and transposons. Genomic analysis has been used to investigate the diversity and spread of C. difficile within hospital settings, the zoonotic transfer of isolates, and the emergence, origins, and geographic spread of epidemic ribotypes. In C. perfringens the clades defined by chromosomal sequence analysis show no indications of clustering based on host species or geographical location. Whole-genome sequence analysis helps to define the different survival and pathogenesis strategies that the clostridia use. Some, such as C. botulinum, produce toxins which rapidly act to kill the host, whereas others, such as C. perfringens and C. difficile, produce less lethal toxins which can damage tissue but do not rapidly kill the host. The genomes provide a resource that can be mined to identify potential vaccine antigens and targets for other forms of therapeutic intervention.
Collapse
|
14
|
Muñoz M, Restrepo-Montoya D, Kumar N, Iraola G, Herrera G, Ríos-Chaparro DI, Díaz-Arévalo D, Patarroyo MA, Lawley TD, Ramírez JD. Comparative genomics identifies potential virulence factors in Clostridium tertium and C. paraputrificum. Virulence 2019; 10:657-676. [PMID: 31304854 PMCID: PMC6629180 DOI: 10.1080/21505594.2019.1637699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2019] [Revised: 05/23/2019] [Accepted: 06/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Some well-known Clostridiales species such as Clostridium difficile and C. perfringens are agents of high impact diseases worldwide. Nevertheless, other foreseen Clostridiales species have recently emerged such as Clostridium tertium and C. paraputrificum. Three fecal isolates were identified as Clostridium tertium (Gcol.A2 and Gcol.A43) and C. paraputrificum (Gcol.A11) during public health screening for C. difficile infections in Colombia. C. paraputrificum genomes were highly diverse and contained large numbers of accessory genes. Genetic diversity and accessory gene percentage were lower among the C. tertium genomes than in the C. paraputrificum genomes. C. difficile tcdA and tcdB toxins encoding homologous sequences and other potential virulence factors were also identified. EndoA interferase, a toxic component of the type II toxin-antitoxin system, was found among the C. tertium genomes. toxA was the only toxin encoding gene detected in Gcol.A43, the Colombian isolate with an experimentally-determined high cytotoxic effect. Gcol.A2 and Gcol.A43 had higher sporulation efficiencies than Gcol.A11 (84.5%, 83.8% and 57.0%, respectively), as supported by the greater number of proteins associated with sporulation pathways in the C. tertium genomes compared with the C. paraputrificum genomes (33.3 and 28.4 on average, respectively). This work allowed complete genome description of two clostridiales species revealing high levels of intra-taxa diversity, accessory genomes containing virulence-factors encoding genes (especially in C. paraputrificum), with proteins involved in sporulation processes more highly represented in C. tertium. These finding suggest the need to advance in the study of those species with potential importance at public health level.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marina Muñoz
- Grupo de Investigaciones Microbiológicas – UR (GIMUR), Programa de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matemáticas, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
- Posgrado Interfacultades, Doctorado en Biotecnología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Daniel Restrepo-Montoya
- Grupo de Investigaciones Microbiológicas – UR (GIMUR), Programa de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matemáticas, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
- Genomics and Bioinformatics Program, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, USA
| | - Nitin Kumar
- Host–Microbiota Interactions Laboratory, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, UK
| | - Gregorio Iraola
- Microbial Genomics Laboratory, Institut Pasteur Montevideo, Montevideo, Uruguay
- Center for Integrative Biology, Universidad Mayor, Santiago de Chile, Chile
| | - Giovanny Herrera
- Grupo de Investigaciones Microbiológicas – UR (GIMUR), Programa de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matemáticas, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Dora I. Ríos-Chaparro
- Grupo de Investigaciones Microbiológicas – UR (GIMUR), Programa de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matemáticas, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Diana Díaz-Arévalo
- Molecular Biology and Immunology Department, Fundación Instituto de Inmunología de Colombia (FIDIC), Bogotá, Colombia
- Faculty of Animal Sciences, Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales (UDCA), Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Manuel A. Patarroyo
- Molecular Biology and Immunology Department, Fundación Instituto de Inmunología de Colombia (FIDIC), Bogotá, Colombia
- School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Trevor D. Lawley
- Host–Microbiota Interactions Laboratory, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, UK
| | - Juan David Ramírez
- Grupo de Investigaciones Microbiológicas – UR (GIMUR), Programa de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matemáticas, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Gupta SK, Dixit S, Dangi SK, Kaur G, Mashooq M, Karthik K, Sarkar M, Mahajan S, Nagaleekar VK. Marker-less deletion of cctA gene of Clostridium chauvoei. Anaerobe 2019; 61:102116. [PMID: 31711886 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2019.102116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2018] [Revised: 10/18/2019] [Accepted: 11/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Clostridium chauvoei causes blackleg disease in domestic animals, especially cattle and sheep. The pathogen produces several toxins including CctA - a hemolysin and protective antigen. Molecular pathogenesis of the disease is poorly understood, possibly due to lack of genetic manipulation tools for C. chauvoei. In the present study, we report the marker-less deletion of cctA gene using the CRISPR-Cas9 system. The C. chauvoei cctA deletion mutant had negligible hemolytic and significantly reduced cytotoxic activities. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of genetic manipulation of C. chauvoei. The method we used in this study can be applied for genetic manipulation of C. chauvoei to better understand the pathogenesis and genetics of the pathogen.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sanjay Kumar Gupta
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Sameer Dixit
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Saroj K Dangi
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Gurpreet Kaur
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Mohmad Mashooq
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Kumaragurubaran Karthik
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Mihir Sarkar
- Division of Physiology and Climatology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Sonalika Mahajan
- Division of Veterinary Biotechnology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India
| | - Viswas Konasagara Nagaleekar
- Division of Bacteriology and Mycology, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, 243122, India.
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Genomic comparison of Clostridium chauvoei isolates from classical and visceral clinical manifestation. Braz J Microbiol 2019; 51:1327-1332. [PMID: 31650466 DOI: 10.1007/s42770-019-00177-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2018] [Accepted: 06/28/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Clostridium chauvoei is the etiological agent of blackleg, an infectious disease affecting cattle and small ruminants worldwide. This disease can manifest as classical blackleg, a condition in which skeletal muscles are affected and visceral blackleg, which affects the heart, sublingual muscles, and the diaphragm. The pathogenesis of the visceral form of the disease is poorly understood. The objective of this study is to determine and analyze complete genomic sequences of six C. chauvoei strains, five isolates from skeletal muscle and one isolate from a visceral case of blackleg in Brazil, to provide insights into the differences in pathogenic profiles of strains causing the different forms of disease. The full genomes of the six C. chauvoei strains were sequenced and comparative analyses were performed among these genomes and the C. chauvoei reference strain JF4335. The results of this study revealed that the genomes of the C. chauvoei strains analyzed are highly conserved; no particular differences were noted that could be associated with the two different clinical manifestations of the disease.
Collapse
|
17
|
Zaragoza NE, Orellana CA, Moonen GA, Moutafis G, Marcellin E. Vaccine Production to Protect Animals Against Pathogenic Clostridia. Toxins (Basel) 2019; 11:E525. [PMID: 31514424 PMCID: PMC6783934 DOI: 10.3390/toxins11090525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2019] [Revised: 08/26/2019] [Accepted: 08/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Clostridium is a broad genus of anaerobic, spore-forming, rod-shaped, Gram-positive bacteria that can be found in different environments all around the world. The genus includes human and animal pathogens that produce potent exotoxins that cause rapid and potentially fatal diseases responsible for countless human casualties and billion-dollar annual loss to the agricultural sector. Diseases include botulism, tetanus, enterotoxemia, gas gangrene, necrotic enteritis, pseudomembranous colitis, blackleg, and black disease, which are caused by pathogenic Clostridium. Due to their ability to sporulate, they cannot be eradicated from the environment. As such, immunization with toxoid or bacterin-toxoid vaccines is the only protective method against infection. Toxins recovered from Clostridium cultures are inactivated to form toxoids, which are then formulated into multivalent vaccines. This review discusses the toxins, diseases, and toxoid production processes of the most common pathogenic Clostridium species, including Clostridiumbotulinum, Clostridiumtetani, Clostridiumperfringens, Clostridiumchauvoei, Clostridiumsepticum, Clostridiumnovyi and Clostridiumhemolyticum.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas E. Zaragoza
- Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia; (N.E.Z.); (C.A.O.)
| | - Camila A. Orellana
- Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia; (N.E.Z.); (C.A.O.)
| | - Glenn A. Moonen
- Zoetis, 45 Poplar Road, Parkville VIC 3052, Australia; (G.A.M.); (G.M.)
| | - George Moutafis
- Zoetis, 45 Poplar Road, Parkville VIC 3052, Australia; (G.A.M.); (G.M.)
| | - Esteban Marcellin
- Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia; (N.E.Z.); (C.A.O.)
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Abstract
ABSTRACT
The pathogenesis of clostridial myonecrosis or gas gangrene involves an interruption to the blood supply to the infected tissues, often via a traumatic wound, anaerobic growth of the infecting clostridial cells, the production of extracellular toxins, and toxin-mediated cell and tissue damage. This review focuses on host-pathogen interactions in
Clostridium perfringens
-mediated and
Clostridium septicum
-mediated myonecrosis. The major toxins involved are
C. perfringens
α-toxin, which has phospholipase C and sphingomyelinase activity, and
C. septicum
α-toxin, a β-pore-forming toxin that belongs to the aerolysin family. Although these toxins are cytotoxic, their effects on host cells are quite complex, with a range of intracellular cell signaling pathways induced by their action on host cell membranes.
Collapse
|
19
|
Abstract
The genus Clostridium is composed of bioproducers, which are important for the industrial production of chemicals, as well as pathogens, which are a significant burden to the patients and on the health care industry. Historically, even though these bacteria are well known and are commonly studied, the genetic technologies to advance our understanding of these microbes have lagged behind other systems. New tools would continue the advancement of our understanding of clostridial physiology. The genetic modification systems available in several clostridia are not as refined as in other organisms and each exhibit their own drawbacks. With the advent of the repurposing of the CRISPR-Cas systems for genetic modification, the tools available for clostridia have improved significantly over the past four years. Several CRISPR-Cas systems such as using wild-type Cas9, Cas9n, dCas9/CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) and a newly studied Cpf1/Cas12a, are reported. These have the potential to greatly advance the study of clostridial species leading to future therapies or the enhanced production of industrially relevant compounds. Here we discuss the details of the CRISPR-Cas systems as well as the advances and current issues in the developed clostridial systems.
Collapse
|
20
|
Characterization of quorum sensing system in Clostridium chauvoei. Anaerobe 2018; 52:92-99. [PMID: 29928976 DOI: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2018.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2018] [Revised: 06/01/2018] [Accepted: 06/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Clostridium chauvoei causes fatal black quarter infection in cattle and buffaloes. The quorum sensing (QS) system, a bacterial cell to cell communication process, of the pathogen was characterized in the current study. The results indicated that C. chauvoei lacked luxS (autoinducer-2) based quorum sensing as detected by the sensor strain Vibrio harveyi BB170. This was supported by absence of luxS gene in C. chauvoei genome. However, the genomic analysis indicated the presence of agrBD system in all three genomes of C. chauvoei available at the NCBI database. The AgrD, which synthesizes QS messenger auto-inducing peptide, was a 44 amino acid protein which shared 59% identity and 75% similarity with AgrD of C. perfringens strain 13 and 56% identity (20% coverage) with Staphylococcus aureus N315. The functional cysteine amino acid was conserved in all the strains. The genomic organisation further suggests the presence of diguanylate cyclase, a gene responsible for synthesis of secondary messenger cyclic di-GMP, at 3' immediate downstream of agrD gene. The real time expression analysis for agrD gene indicated that expression was better at 37 °C (1.9-3.7 fold increase) compared to a higher temperature of 40 °C. However, stable expression was observed at different growth stages (log and early stationary phase) with 0.8-1.4 fold changes in expression pattern. The results indicate the presence of a constitutively expressed agrBD quorum sensing system in C. chauvoei.
Collapse
|
21
|
Idrees MA, Younus M, Farooqi SH, Khan AU. Blackleg in cattle: Current understanding and future research perspectives- A review. Microb Pathog 2018; 120:176-180. [PMID: 29733903 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2018.04.047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2018] [Revised: 04/21/2018] [Accepted: 04/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Blackleg is an endogenous acute infection that principally affects cattle. The disease is caused by Clostridium chauvoei (C. chauvoei), an anaerobic spore forming bacterium. Control of this disease is based on stringent husbandry measures and scheduled vaccination plan. In recent years, the major virulence factors of C. chauvoei have been discovered and described. However, the pathogenesis of blackleg in cattle and in particular, circulation of the pathogen from point of entry to target tissues is yet not fully elucidated. This review summarizes the latest review of literature that significantly contributed for understanding the disease in cattle, and provides a foundation to preventive strategies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- M A Idrees
- Department of Pathobiology, KBCMA, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, 51600, Narowal, Pakistan
| | - M Younus
- Department of Clinical Studies, KBCMA, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, 51600, Narowal, Pakistan
| | - S H Farooqi
- Department of Clinical Studies, KBCMA, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, 51600, Narowal, Pakistan.
| | - A U Khan
- Department of Pathobiology, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, 35200, Jhang, Pakistan
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Busch A, Thomas P, Zuchantke E, Brendebach H, Neubert K, Gruetzke J, Al Dahouk S, Peters M, Hotzel H, Neubauer H, Tomaso H. Revisiting Francisella tularensis subsp. holarctica, Causative Agent of Tularemia in Germany With Bioinformatics: New Insights in Genome Structure, DNA Methylation and Comparative Phylogenetic Analysis. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:344. [PMID: 29593661 PMCID: PMC5859110 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.00344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2017] [Accepted: 02/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Francisella (F.) tularensis is a highly virulent, Gram-negative bacterial pathogen and the causative agent of the zoonotic disease tularemia. Here, we generated, analyzed and characterized a high quality circular genome sequence of the F. tularensis subsp. holarctica strain 12T0050 that caused fatal tularemia in a hare. Besides the genomic structure, we focused on the analysis of oriC, unique to the Francisella genus and regulating replication in and outside hosts and the first report on genomic DNA methylation of a Francisella strain. The high quality genome was used to establish and evaluate a diagnostic whole genome sequencing pipeline. A genotyping strategy for F. tularensis was developed using various bioinformatics tools for genotyping. Additionally, whole genome sequences of F. tularensis subsp. holarctica isolates isolated in the years 2008–2015 in Germany were generated. A phylogenetic analysis allowed to determine the genetic relatedness of these isolates and confirmed the highly conserved nature of F. tularensis subsp. holarctica.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anne Busch
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Prasad Thomas
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Eric Zuchantke
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Holger Brendebach
- Department of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Berlin, Germany
| | - Kerstin Neubert
- Algorithmic Bioinformatics, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Institute of Computer Science, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Josephine Gruetzke
- Department of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sascha Al Dahouk
- Department of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Berlin, Germany
| | - Martin Peters
- Standort Arnsberg, Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt Westfalen, Arnsberg, Germany
| | - Helmut Hotzel
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Heinrich Neubauer
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| | - Herbert Tomaso
- Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Jena, Germany
| |
Collapse
|