Mutation-Driven Divergence and Convergence Indicate Adaptive Evolution of the Intracellular Human-Restricted Pathogen, Bartonella bacilliformis.

ABSTRACT: Among all species of Bartonella, human-restricted Bartonella bacilliformis is the most virulent but harbors one of the most reduced genomes. Carrión's disease, the infection caused by B. bacilliformis, has been afflicting poor rural populations for centuries in the high-altitude valleys of the South American Andes, where the pathogen's distribution is probably restricted by its sand fly vector's range. Importantly, Carrión's disease satisfies the criteria set by the World Health Organization for a disease amenable to elimination. However, to date, there are no genome-level studies to identify potential footprints of B. bacilliformis (patho)adaptation. Our comparative genomic approach demonstrates that the evolution of this intracellular pathogen is shaped predominantly via mutation. Analys

SUBMITTER: Paul S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4864206 | biostudies-literature | 2016 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature