Abstract

Phages are a primary driving force behind the evolution of bacterial pathogens by transferring a variety of virulence genes into their hosts. Similar to other bacterial genomes, the Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis LK5 genome contains several regions that are homologous to phages. Although genomic analysis demonstrated the presence of prophages, it was unable to confirm which phage elements within the genome were viable. Genetic markers were used to tag one of the prophages in the genome to allow monitoring of phage induction. Commonly used laboratory strains of Salmonella were resistant to phage infection, and therefore a rapid screen was developed to identify susceptible hosts. This approach showed that a genetically tagged prophage, ELPhiS (Enteritidis lysogenic phage S), was capable of infecting Salmonella serovars that are diverse in host range and virulence and has the potential to laterally transfer genes between these serovars via lysogenic conversion. The rapid screen approach is adaptable to any system with a large collection of isolates and may be used to test the viability of prophages found by sequencing the genomes of various bacterial pathogens.

Links

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Publisher Full Text

Authors

Hanna LF, Matthews TD, Dinsdale EA, Hasty D, Edwards RA

Institution

Molecular Sciences Department, University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Memphis, Tennessee, USA.

Source

Applied and environmental microbiology 78:6 2012 Mar pg 1785-93

MeSH

DNA, Viral
Gene Order
Gene Transfer, Horizontal
Genes, Viral
Host Specificity
Lysogeny
Molecular Sequence Data
Prophages
Salmonella enteritidis
Sequence Analysis, DNA
Virulence
Virus Activation

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

Language

eng

PubMed ID

22247173