Phylogenetic identification of bacterial MazF toxin protein motifs among probiotic strains and foodborne pathogens and potential implications of engineered probiotic intervention in food.

ABSTRACT:

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Background

Toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems are commonly found in bacteria and Archaea, and it is the most common mechanism involved in bacterial programmed cell death or apoptosis. Recently, MazF, the toxin component of the toxin-antitoxin module, has been categorized as an endoribonuclease, or it may have a function similar to that of a RNA interference enzyme.

Results

In this paper, with comparative data and phylogenetic analyses, we are able to identify several potential MazF-conserved motifs in limited subsets of foodborne pathogens and probiotic strains and further provide a molecular basis for the development of engineered/synthetic probiotic strains for the mitigation of foodborne illnesses. Our findings also show that some probiotic strains, as fit as

SUBMITTER: Yan X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3519753 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature