Comparative Genomics Reveal That Host-Innate Immune Responses Influence the Clinical Prevalence of Legionella pneumophila Serogroups.

ABSTRACT: Legionella pneumophila is the primary etiologic agent of legionellosis, a potentially fatal respiratory illness. Amongst the sixteen described L. pneumophila serogroups, a majority of the clinical infections diagnosed using standard methods are serogroup 1 (Sg1). This high clinical prevalence of Sg1 is hypothesized to be linked to environmental specific advantages and/or to increased virulence of strains belonging to Sg1. The genetic determinants for this prevalence remain unknown primarily due to the limited genomic information available for non-Sg1 clinical strains. Through a systematic attempt to culture Legionella from patient respiratory samples, we have previously reported that 34% of all culture confirmed legionellosis cases in Ontario (n = 351) are caused by non-Sg1 Legionella. Phy

SUBMITTER: Khan MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3694923 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature