CRISPR/cas loci of type II Propionibacterium acnes confer immunity against acquisition of mobile elements present in type I P. acnes.

ABSTRACT: Propionibacterium acnes is a skin commensal that occasionally acts as an opportunistic pathogen. The population structure of this species shows three main lineages (I-III). While type I strains are mainly associated with sebaceous follicles of human skin and inflammatory acne, types II and III strains are more often associated with deep tissue infections. We investigated the occurrence and distribution of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) in P. acnes, assessed their immunological memory, and addressed the question if such a system could account for type-specific properties of the species. A collection of 108 clinical isolates covering all known phylotypes of P. acnes was screened for the existence of CRISPR/cas loci. We found that CRISPR loci are restri

SUBMITTER: Bruggemann H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3316620 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature