Genome sequence of a serotype M3 strain of group A Streptococcus: phage-encoded toxins, the high-virulence phenotype, and clone emergence.

ABSTRACT: Genome sequences are available for many bacterial strains, but there has been little progress in using these data to understand the molecular basis of pathogen emergence and differences in strain virulence. Serotype M3 strains of group A Streptococcus (GAS) are a common cause of severe invasive infections with unusually high rates of morbidity and mortality. To gain insight into the molecular basis of this high-virulence phenotype, we sequenced the genome of strain MGAS315, an organism isolated from a patient with streptococcal toxic shock syndrome. The genome is composed of 1,900,521 bp, and it shares approximately 1.7 Mb of related genetic material with genomes of serotype M1 and M18 strains. Phage-like elements account for the great majority of variation in gene content relative to the

SUBMITTER: Beres SB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC126627 | biostudies-literature | 2002 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature