Evidence for a lineage of virulent bacteriophages that target Campylobacter.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Our understanding of the dynamics of genome stability versus gene flux within bacteriophage lineages is limited. Recently, there has been a renewed interest in the use of bacteriophages as 'therapeutic' agents; a prerequisite for their use in such therapies is a thorough understanding of their genetic complement, genome stability and their ecology to avoid the dissemination or mobilisation of phage or bacterial virulence and toxin genes. Campylobacter, a food-borne pathogen, is one of the organisms for which the use of bacteriophage is being considered to reduce human exposure to this organism.

Results

Sequencing and genome analysis was performed for two Campylobacter bacteriophages. The genomes were extremely similar at the nucleotide level (> or = 96%) with most

SUBMITTER: Timms AR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2853527 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature