In silico prediction of human pathogenicity in the γ-proteobacteria

Background

Although the majority of bacteria are innocuous or even beneficial for their host, others are highly infectious pathogens that can cause widespread and deadly diseases. When investigating the relationships between bacteria and other living organisms, it is therefore essential to be able to separate pathogenic organisms from non-pathogenic ones. Using traditional experimental methods for this purpose can be very costly and time-consuming, and also uncertain since animal models are not always good predictors for pathogenicity in humans. Bioinformatics-based methods are therefore strongly needed to mine the fast growing number of genome sequences and assess in a rapid and reliable way the pathogenicity of novel bacteria.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We describe a new in silico method for the prediction of bacterial pathogenicity, based on the identification in microbial genomes of features that appear to correlate with virulence. The method does not rely on identifying genes known to be involved in pathogenicity (for instance virulence factors), but rather it inherently builds families of proteins that, irrespective of their function, are consistently present in only one of the two kinds of organisms, pathogens or non-pathogens. Whether a new bacterium carries proteins contained in these families determines its prediction as pathogenic or non-pathogenic. The application of the method on a set of known genomes correctly classified the virulence potential of 86% of the organisms tested. An additional validation on an independent test-set assigned correctly 22 out of 24 bacteria.

Conclusions

The proposed approach was demonstrated to go beyond the species bias imposed by evolutionary relatedness, and performs better than predictors based solely on taxonomy or sequence similarity. A set of protein families that differentiate pathogenic and non-pathogenic strains were identified, including families of yet uncharacterized proteins that are suggested to be involved in bacterial pathogenicity.     

Mining virulence genes using metagenomics

When a bacterial genome is compared to the metagenome of an environment it inhabits, most genes recruit at high sequence identity. In free-living bacteria (for instance marine bacteria compared against the ocean metagenome) certain genomic regions are totally absent in recruitment plots, representing therefore genes unique to individual bacterial isolates. We show that these Metagenomic Islands (MIs) are also visible in bacteria living in human hosts when their genomes are compared to sequences from the human microbiome, despite the compartmentalized structure of human-related environments such as the gut. From an applied point of view, MIs of human pathogens (e.g. those identified in enterohaemorragic Escherichia coli against the gut metagenome or in pathogenic Neisseria meningitidis against the oral metagenome) include virulence genes that appear to be absent in related strains or species present in the microbiome of healthy individuals. We propose that this strategy (i.e. recruitment analysis of pathogenic bacteria against the metagenome of healthy subjects) can be used to detect pathogenicity regions in species where the genes involved in virulence are poorly characterized. Using this approach, we detect well-known pathogenicity islands and identify new potential virulence genes in several human pathogens.     

A Dual Role for Microbial Pathogen-Derived Effector Proteins in Plant Disease and Resistance

Many proteins from plant pathogens affecting the interaction with the host plant have dual functions: they promote virulence on the host species and they function as avirulence determinants by eliciting defense reactions in host cultivars expressing the appropriate resistance genes. In viruses all proteins encoded by the small genomes can be expected to be essential for viral development in the host. However, in different plants surveillance systems have evolved that are able to recognize most of these proteins. Bacteria and fungi have specialized pathogenicity and virulence genes. Many of the latter were originally identified through the resistance gene-dependent elicitor activity of their products. Their role in virulence only became apparent when they were inactivated or transferred to different microbes or after their ectopic expression in host plants. Many microbes appear to maintain these genes despite their disadvantageous effect, introducing only few mutations to abolish the interaction of their products with the plant recognition system. This has been interpreted as been indicative of a virulence function of the gene products that is not impaired by the mutations. Alternatively, in particular in bacteria there is now evidence that pathogenicity was acquired through horizontal gene transfer. Genes supporting virulence in the donor organism's original host appear to have traveled along. Being gratuitous in the new situation, they may have been inactivated without loss of any beneficial function for the pathogen.     

Staphylococcus aureus mobile genetic elements

Among the bacteria groups, most of them are known to be beneficial to human being whereas only a minority is being recognized as harmful. The pathogenicity of bacteria is due, in part, to their rapid adaptation in the presence of selective pressures exerted by the human host. In addition, through their genomes, bacteria are subject to mutations, various rearrangements or horizontal gene transfer among and/or within bacterial species. Bacteria’s essential metabolic functions are generally encoding by the core genes. Apart of the core genes, there are several number of mobile genetic elements (MGE) acquired by horizontal gene transfer that might be beneficial under certain environmental conditions. These MGE namely bacteriophages, transposons, plasmids, and pathogenicity islands represent about 15 % Staphylococcus aureus genomes. The acquisition of most of the MGE is made by horizontal genomic islands (GEI), recognized as discrete DNA segments between closely related strains, transfer. The GEI contributes to the wide spread of microorganisms with an important effect on their genome plasticity and evolution. The GEI are also involve in the antibiotics resistance and virulence genes dissemination. In this review, we summarize the mobile genetic elements of S. aureus.     

The molecular basis of infectious diseases: pathogenicity islands and other mobile genetic elements. A review

Bacterial genomes generally consist of stable regions termed core genome, and variable regions that form the so-called flexible gene pool. The flexible part is composed of bacteriophages, plasmids, transposons as well as unstable large regions that have been termed genomic islands. Genomic islands encoding virulence factors of pathogenic bacteria have been designated "pathogenicity islands". Pathogenicity islands were first discovered in uropathogenic Escherichia coli and presently more than 30 bacterial species carrying pathogenicity islands have been described. This review summarises the current knowledge on bacterial genomic islands and their general features, and discusses their putative role in the evolution of microbes in the light of genomics of pathogenic bacteria.     

High abundance of virulence gene homologues in marine bacteria

Marine bacteria can cause harm to single-celled and multicellular eukaryotes. However, relatively little is known about the underlying genetic basis for marine bacterial interactions with higher organisms. We examined whole-genome sequences from a large number of marine bacteria for the prevalence of homologues to virulence genes and pathogenicity islands known from bacteria that are pathogenic to terrestrial animals and plants. As many as 60 out of 119 genomes of marine bacteria, with no known association to infectious disease, harboured genes of virulence-associated types III, IV, V and VI protein secretion systems. Type III secretion was relatively uncommon, while type IV was widespread among alphaproteobacteria (particularly among roseobacters) and type VI was primarily found among gammaproteobacteria. Other examples included homologues of the Yersinia murine toxin and a phage-related 'antifeeding' island. Analysis of the Global Ocean Sampling metagenomic data indicated that virulence genes were present in up to 8% of the planktonic bacteria, with highest values in productive waters. From a marine ecology perspective, expression of these widely distributed genes would indicate that some bacteria infect or even consume live cells, that is, generate a previously unrecognized flow of organic matter and nutrients directly from eukaryotes to bacteria.     

Regulation of carbon metabolism in the mollicutes and its relation to virulence

The mollicutes are cell wall-less bacteria that live in close association with their eukaryotic hosts. Their genomes are strongly reduced and so are their metabolic capabilities. A survey of the available genome sequences reveals that the mollicutes are capable of utilizing sugars as source of carbon and energy via glycolysis. The pentose phosphate pathway is incomplete in these bacteria, and genes encoding enzymes of the tricarboxylic acid cycle are absent from the genomes. Sugars are transported by the phosphotransferase system. As in related bacteria, the phosphotransferase system does also seem to play a regulatory role in the mollicutes as can be concluded from the functionality of the regulatory HPr kinase/phosphorylase. In Mycoplasma pneumoniae, the activity of HPr kinase is triggered in the presence of glycerol. This carbon source may be important for the mollicutes since it is available in epithelial tissues and its metabolism results in the formation of hydrogen peroxide, the major virulence factor of several mollicutes. In plant-pathogenic mollicutes such as Spiroplasma citri, the regulation of carbon metabolism is crucial in the adaptation to life in plant tissues or the insect vectors. Thus, carbon metabolism seems to be intimately linked to pathogenicity in the mollicutes.     

A novel interpretation of structural dot plots of genomes derived from the analysis of two strains of Neisseria meningitidis

Neisseria meningitidis is the agent of invasive meningococcal disease, including cerebral meningitis and septicemia. Because the diseases caused by different clonal groups (sequence types) have their own epidemiological characteristics, it is important to understand the differences among the genomes of the N. meningitidis clonal groups. To this end, a novel interpretation of a structural dot plot of genomes was devised and applied; exact nucleotide matches between the genomes of N. meningitidis serogroup A strain Z2491 and serogroup B strain MC58 were identified, leading to the specification of various structural regions. Known and putative virulence genes for each N. meningitidis strain were then classified into these regions. We found that virulence genes of MC58 tend more to the translocated regions (chromosomal segments in new sequence contexts) than do those of Z2491, notably tending towards the interface between one of the translocated regions and the collinear region. Within the col-linear region, virulence genes tend to occur within 16 kb of gaps in the exact matches. Verification of these tendencies using genes clustered in the cps locus was sufficiently supportive to suggest that these tendencies can be used to focus the search for and understanding of virulence genes and mechanisms of pathogenicity in these two organisms.     

Detection of virulence-related genes in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lactococcus garvieae</Emphasis> and their expression in response to different conditions

Lactococcus garvieae has emerged as an important zoonotic pathogen. However, information regarding mechanisms and factors related to its pathogenicity is lacking. In the present study, we investigated the distribution and functionality of genes related to virulence factors in L. garvieae strains isolated from different niches (diseased fish, humans, meat and dairy products, vegetables), using both post-genomic and genotypic analysis. Putative genes encoding hemolysin, fibronectin-binding protein, and penicillin acylase were detected in all analyzed genomes/strains. Their expression was significantly induced by bile salt stress. Putative genes encoding bile salt hydrolase were found in a few strains from dairy and human sources, as well as the mobilizable tet genes. Finally, all genomes possessed a folate gene cluster, in which mutations in the dihydropteroate synthase gene (folP) could be related to sulfonamide resistance. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study aimed to explore the pathogenic potential of L. garvieae through the analysis of numerous L. garvieae genomes/strains, coming from different sources. This approach allowed the detection of virulence-related genes not yet investigated in the species and the study of their expression after exposure to different environmental stresses. The results obtained suggest a virulence potential in some L. garvieae strains that can be exploited for survival in the human gastrointestinal tract.     

Cyt toxin expression reveals an inverse regulation of insect and plant virulence factors of Dickeya dadantii

The plant pathogenic bacteria Dickeya dadantii is also a pathogen of the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum. The genome of the bacteria contains four cyt genes, encoding homologues of Bacillus thuringiensis Cyt toxins, which are involved in its pathogenicity to insects. We show here that these genes are transcribed as an operon, and we determined the conditions necessary for their expression. Their expression is induced at high temperature and at an osmolarity equivalent to that found in the plant phloem sap. The regulators of cyt genes have also been identified: their expression is repressed by H‐NS and VfmE and activated by PecS. These genes are already known to regulate plant virulence factors, but in an opposite way. When tested in a virulence assay by ingestion, the pecS mutant was almost non‐pathogenic while hns and vfmE mutants behaved in the same way as the wild‐type strain. Mutants of other regulators of plant virulence, GacA, OmpR and PhoP, that do not control Cyt toxin production, also showed reduced pathogenicity. In an assay by injection of bacteria, the gacA strain was less pathogenic but, surprisingly, the pecS mutant was slightly more virulent. These results show that Cyt toxins are not the only virulence factors required to kill aphids, and that these factors act at different stages of the infection. Moreover, their production is controlled by general virulence regulators known for their role in plant virulence. This integration could indicate that virulence towards insects is a normal mode of life for D. dadantii.     

Trafficking arms: oomycete effectors enter host plant cells

Oomycetes cause devastating plant diseases of global importance, yet little is known about the molecular basis of their pathogenicity. Recently, the first oomycete effector genes with cultivar-specific avirulence (AVR) functions were identified. Evidence of diversifying selection in these genes and their cognate plant host resistance genes suggests a molecular "arms race" as plants and oomycetes attempt to achieve and evade detection, respectively. AVR proteins from Hyaloperonospora parasitica and Phytophthora infestans are detected in the plant host cytoplasm, consistent with the hypothesis that oomycetes, as is the case with bacteria and fungi, actively deliver effectors inside host cells. The RXLR amino acid motif, which is present in these AVR proteins and other secreted oomycete proteins, is similar to a host-cell-targeting signal in virulence proteins of malaria parasites (Plasmodium species), suggesting a conserved role in pathogenicity.     

Reduced set of virulence genes allows high accuracy prediction of bacterial pathogenicity in humans

Although there have been great advances in understanding bacterial pathogenesis, there is still a lack of integrative information about what makes a bacterium a human pathogen. The advent of high-throughput sequencing technologies has dramatically increased the amount of completed bacterial genomes, for both known human pathogenic and non-pathogenic strains; this information is now available to investigate genetic features that determine pathogenic phenotypes in bacteria. In this work we determined presence/absence patterns of [Formula: see text] different virulence-related genes among more than [Formula: see text] finished bacterial genomes from both human pathogenic and non-pathogenic strains, belonging to different taxonomic groups (i.e: Actinobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, Firmicutes, etc.). An accuracy of 95% using a cross-fold validation scheme with in-fold feature selection is obtained when classifying human pathogens and non-pathogens. A reduced subset of highly informative genes ([Formula: see text]) is presented and applied to an external validation set. The statistical model was implemented in the BacFier v1.0 software (freely available at [Formula: see text]), that displays not only the prediction (pathogen/non-pathogen) and an associated probability for pathogenicity, but also the presence/absence vector for the analyzed genes, so it is possible to decipher the subset of virulence genes responsible for the classification on the analyzed genome. Furthermore, we discuss the biological relevance for bacterial pathogenesis of the core set of genes, corresponding to eight functional categories, all with evident and documented association with the phenotypes of interest. Also, we analyze which functional categories of virulence genes were more distinctive for pathogenicity in each taxonomic group, which seems to be a completely new kind of information and could lead to important evolutionary conclusions.     

Genomic analysis reveals that Pseudomonas aeruginosa virulence is combinatorial

Background

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a ubiquitous environmental bacterium and an important opportunistic human pathogen. Generally, the acquisition of genes in the form of pathogenicity islands distinguishes pathogenic isolates from nonpathogens. We therefore sequenced a highly virulent strain of P. aeruginosa, PA14, and compared it with a previously sequenced (and less pathogenic) strain, PAO1, to identify novel virulence genes.

Results

The PA14 and PAO1 genomes are remarkably similar, although PA14 has a slightly larger genome (6.5 megabses [Mb]) than does PAO1 (6.3 Mb). We identified 58 PA14 gene clusters that are absent in PAO1 to determine which of these genes, if any, contribute to its enhanced virulence in a Caenorhabditis elegans pathogenicity model. First, we tested 18 additional diverse strains in the C. elegans model and observed a wide range of pathogenic potential; however, genotyping these strains using a custom microarray showed that the presence of PA14 genes that are absent in PAO1 did not correlate with the virulence of these strains. Second, we utilized a full-genome nonredundant mutant library of PA14 to identify five genes (absent in PAO1) required for C. elegans killing. Surprisingly, although these five genes are present in many other P. aeruginosa strains, they do not correlate with virulence in C. elegans.

Conclusion

Genes required for pathogenicity in one strain of P. aeruginosa are neither required for nor predictive of virulence in other strains. We therefore propose that virulence in this organism is both multifactorial and combinatorial, the result of a pool of pathogenicity-related genes that interact in various combinations in different genetic backgrounds.     

PathogenFinder - Distinguishing Friend from Foe Using Bacterial Whole Genome Sequence Data

Although the majority of bacteria are harmless or even beneficial to their host, others are highly virulent and can cause serious diseases, and even death. Due to the constantly decreasing cost of high-throughput sequencing there are now many completely sequenced genomes available from both human pathogenic and innocuous strains. The data can be used to identify gene families that correlate with pathogenicity and to develop tools to predict the pathogenicity of newly sequenced strains, investigations that previously were mainly done by means of more expensive and time consuming experimental approaches. We describe PathogenFinder (http://cge.cbs.dtu.dk/services/PathogenFinder/), a web-server for the prediction of bacterial pathogenicity by analysing the input proteome, genome, or raw reads provided by the user. The method relies on groups of proteins, created without regard to their annotated function or known involvement in pathogenicity. The method has been built to work with all taxonomic groups of bacteria and using the entire training-set, achieved an accuracy of 88.6% on an independent test-set, by correctly classifying 398 out of 449 completely sequenced bacteria. The approach here proposed is not biased on sets of genes known to be associated with pathogenicity, thus the approach could aid the discovery of novel pathogenicity factors. Furthermore the pathogenicity prediction web-server could be used to isolate the potential pathogenic features of both known and unknown strains.     

Insights on evolution of virulence and resistance from the complete genome analysis of an early methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strain and a biofilm-producing methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis strain

Staphylococcus aureus is an opportunistic pathogen and the major causative agent of numerous hospital- and community-acquired infections. Staphylococcus epidermidis has emerged as a causative agent of infections often associated with implanted medical devices. We have sequenced the approximately 2.8-Mb genome of S. aureus COL, an early methicillin-resistant isolate, and the approximately 2.6-Mb genome of S. epidermidis RP62a, a methicillin-resistant biofilm isolate. Comparative analysis of these and other staphylococcal genomes was used to explore the evolution of virulence and resistance between these two species. The S. aureus and S. epidermidis genomes are syntenic throughout their lengths and share a core set of 1,681 open reading frames. Genome islands in nonsyntenic regions are the primary source of variations in pathogenicity and resistance. Gene transfer between staphylococci and low-GC-content gram-positive bacteria appears to have shaped their virulence and resistance profiles. Integrated plasmids in S. epidermidis carry genes encoding resistance to cadmium and species-specific LPXTG surface proteins. A novel genome island encodes multiple phenol-soluble modulins, a potential S. epidermidis virulence factor. S. epidermidis contains the cap operon, encoding the polyglutamate capsule, a major virulence factor in Bacillus anthracis. Additional phenotypic differences are likely the result of single nucleotide polymorphisms, which are most numerous in cell envelope proteins. Overall differences in pathogenicity can be attributed to genome islands in S. aureus which encode enterotoxins, exotoxins, leukocidins, and leukotoxins not found in S. epidermidis.     

The factors of bacterial pathogenicity and their role in the development of the infectious process

The latest data concerning the characterization of the pathogenicity factors of bacteria and the evaluation of their role in the realization of definite phases of the development of the infectious process are presented. The infectious process is regarded as the result of the complicated simultaneous interaction of microorganisms and different cells and tissues of the host body. The problems of the polydeterminant character of pathogenicity factors, tho possibility of the joint action of different factors at one and the same stage of the development of the infectious process and, vice versa, the action of the same factors at different stages of the interaction of the infective agent and the susceptible host are discussed. Modern data on the genetic control of pathogenicity factors, on the localization of their genetic determinants on the chromosome and the virulence plasmids, information of pathogenicity "islets" which jointly determine the pathogenic potential of the infective agent are given. The emphasis is made on fact that the general principle of the genetic control of bacterial pathogenicity is complicated relationship between chromosomal and nonchromosomal determinants; some of them form a part of genetic pathogenicity "islets", simultaneously regulating and expressing the pathogenicity factors of the infective agent.     

基于生物信息学的致病菌特有基因预测及分析

目的:利用生物信息学方法对致病菌特有基因进行大规模预测,同时探讨致病菌特有基因与致病菌毒力之间的关系。方法:构建致病性细菌蛋白质序列数据库和非致病性细菌蛋白质序列数据库,利用同源性比对的方法(BlastP工具)对致病菌特有基因进行预测;同时从文献中提取与致病菌毒力紧密相关的毒力因子,构建具有代表性的毒力因子分析库,对预测的致病菌特有基因进行比较分析。结果:在致病菌780310个基因中,预测了致病菌特有基因79166个,约占致病菌总基因的10.15%;预测的致病菌特有基因包含了构建的毒力因子分析库中的大部分毒力基因。结论:预测的致病菌特有基因与致病菌毒力紧密相关,大大减少了进一步在致病菌基因组中鉴定毒力基因时整个基因组的数据量。     

Antimicrobials: targeting virulence genes necessary for intracellular multiplication

Intracellular bacteria constitute a major class of pathogens for humans and animals. Their pathogenicity is linked to their ability to multiply inside a host cell. A set of virulence genes (virulome) is required for this intracellular lifestyle. Recent studies have shown that blocking the enzymes encoded by these virulence genes impairs intracellular multiplication of the pathogen. These specific factors could constitute a new set of possible targets for antimicrobial drugs. The potential advantages, pitfalls and challenges of a strategy that targets these virulence factors are discussed.     

Stress-inducible bacterial proteins and virulence

Different species of pathogenic bacteria, including Salmonella, Neisseria, Listeria and Francisella have been used to demonstrate relationship between the synthesis of stressor induced proteins by cells and the phenotypic manifestation of their virulence. The impact of such external factors as high temperature, low pH, osmolarity, substrate limitation, the content of active forms of oxygen, etc. is accompanied by the synthesis of different stressor induced proteins playing a complex role. Under unfavorable environmental conditions the synthesis of these proteins ensures the survival of the infective agents. Under conditions of a macroorganism synthesis of some stressor induced proteins promotes the survival of infective agents and their resistance to the action of humoral and cell-mediated protective factors of the host. As is known, the expression of virulence genes is not constitutive. The expression of these genes greatly depends on environmental conditions and its induction is determined by extra- or intracellular location of the infective agent. Several systems of the regulation of bacterial pathogenicity factors have been described that are relatively not numerous, conservative and respond to external signals. The relevance of a number of stressor induced proteins of bacteria to virulence associated factors is discussed.