Ca. Endozoicomonas cretensis: A Novel Fish Pathogen Characterized by Genome Plasticity.

ABSTRACT: Endozoicomonas bacteria are generally beneficial symbionts of diverse marine invertebrates including reef-building corals, sponges, sea squirts, sea slugs, molluscs, and Bryozoans. In contrast, the recently reported Ca. Endozoicomonas cretensis was identified as a vertebrate pathogen, causing epitheliocystis in fish larvae resulting in massive mortality. Here, we described the Ca. E. cretensis draft genome, currently undergoing genome decay as evidenced by massive insertion sequence (IS element) expansion and pseudogene formation. Many of the insertion sequences are also predicted to carry outward-directed promoters, implying that they may be able to modulate the expression of neighbouring coding sequences (CDSs). Comparative genomic analysis has revealed many Ca. E. cretensis-specific CDS

SUBMITTER: Qi W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6007542 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature