Comparative genomics of 2009 seasonal plague (Yersinia pestis) in New Mexico.

ABSTRACT: Plague disease caused by the gram-negative bacterium Yersinia pestis routinely affects animals and occasionally humans, in the western United States. The strains native to the North American continent are thought to be derived from a single introduction in the late 19(th) century. The degree to which these isolates have diverged genetically since their introduction is not clear, and new genomic markers to assay the diversity of North American plague are highly desired. To assay genetic diversity of plague isolates within confined geographic areas, draft genome sequences were generated by 454 pyrosequencing from nine environmental and clinical plague isolates. In silico assemblies of Variable Number Tandem Repeat (VNTR) loci were compared to laboratory-generated profiles for seven markers.

SUBMITTER: Gibbons HS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3281092 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature