Development of a lateral flow test for the rapid detection of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Avibacterium paragallinarum</Emphasis> in chickens suspected of having infectious coryza

Background

Infectious coryza (IC) is an acute respiratory disease of growing chickens and layers caused by Avibacterium paragallinarum. The development of tools that allow rapid pathogen detection is necessary in order to avoid disease dissemination and economic losses in poultry. An Av. paragallinarum-specific Ma-4 epitope of the TonB-dependent transporter (TBDT) was selected using bioinformatic tools in order to immunize a BalbC mouse and to produce monoclonal antibodies to be used in a lateral flow test (LFT) developed for Av. paragallinarum detection in chicken nasal mucus samples.

Results

The 1G7G8 monoclonal antibody was able to detect TBDT in Av. paragallinarum cultures (serogroups: A, B and C) by Western blot and indirect ELISA assay. Consequently, we developed a self-pairing prototype LFT. The limit of detection of the prototype LFT using Av. paragallinarum cultures was 1?×?10⁴ colony-forming units (CFU)/mL. Thirty-five nasal mucus samples from chickens suspected of having infectious coryza were evaluated for the LFT detection capacity and compared with bacterial isolation (B.I) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Comparative indicators such as sensitivity (Se), specificity (Sp), positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive values (NPV) and the kappa index (K) were obtained. The values were 100.0% Se, 50% Sp, 65.4% PPV, 100% NPV, and 0.49?K and 83.9% Se, 100% Sp, 100% PPV, 44.4% NPV, and 0.54?K for the comparison of the LFT with B.I and PCR, respectively. Additionally, the LFT allowed the detection of Av. paragallinarum from coinfection cases of Av. paragallinarum with Gallibacterium anatis.

Conclusions

The results indicate that the self-pairing prototype LFT is suitable for the detection of TBDT in Av. paragallinarum cultures as well as in field samples such as nasal mucus from Av. paragallinarum-infected chickens. Therefore, this prototype LFT could be considered a rapid and promising tool to be used in farm conditions for Av. paragallinarum diagnosis.

     

Resident bacteria contribute to opportunistic infections of the respiratory tract

Opportunistic pathogens frequently cause volatile infections in hosts with compromised immune systems or a disrupted normal microbiota. The commensalism of diverse microorganisms contributes to colonization resistance, which prevents the expansion of opportunistic pathogens. Following microbiota disruption, pathogens promptly adapt to altered niches and obtain growth advantages. Nevertheless, whether and how resident bacteria modulate the growth dynamics of invasive pathogens and the eventual outcome of such infections are still unclear. Here, we utilized birds as a model animal and observed a resident bacterium exacerbating the invasion of Avibacterium paragallinarum (previously Haemophilus paragallinarum) in the respiratory tract. We first found that negligibly abundant Staphylococcus chromogenes, rather than Staphylococcus aureus, played a dominant role in Av. paragallinarum-associated infectious coryza in poultry based on epidemic investigations and in vitro analyses. Furthermore, we determined that S. chromogenes not only directly provides the necessary nutrition factor nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD⁺) but also accelerates its biosynthesis and release from host cells to promote the survival and growth of Av. paragallinarum. Last, we successfully intervened in Av. paragallinarum-associated infections in animal models using antibiotics that specifically target S. chromogenes. Our findings show that opportunistic pathogens can hijack commensal bacteria to initiate infection and expansion and suggest a new paradigm to ameliorate opportunistic infections by modulating the dynamics of resident bacteria.     

Enhanced De Novo Assembly of High Throughput Pyrosequencing Data Using Whole Genome Mapping

Despite major advances in next-generation sequencing, assembly of sequencing data, especially data from novel microorganisms or re-emerging pathogens, remains constrained by the lack of suitable reference sequences. De novo assembly is the best approach to achieve an accurate finished sequence, but multiple sequencing platforms or paired-end libraries are often required to achieve full genome coverage. In this study, we demonstrated a method to assemble complete bacterial genome sequences by integrating shotgun Roche 454 pyrosequencing with optical whole genome mapping (WGM). The whole genome restriction map (WGRM) was used as the reference to scaffold de novo assembled sequence contigs through a stepwise process. Large de novo contigs were placed in the correct order and orientation through alignment to the WGRM. De novo contigs that were not aligned to WGRM were merged into scaffolds using contig branching structure information. These extended scaffolds were then aligned to the WGRM to identify the overlaps to be eliminated and the gaps and mismatches to be resolved with unused contigs. The process was repeated until a sequence with full coverage and alignment with the whole genome map was achieved. Using this method we were able to achieved 100% WGRM coverage without a paired-end library. We assembled complete sequences for three distinct genetic components of a clinical isolate of Providencia stuartii: a bacterial chromosome, a novel bla _NDM-1 plasmid, and a novel bacteriophage, without separately purifying them to homogeneity.     

Performance comparison of second- and third-generation sequencers using a bacterial genome with two chromosomes

Background

The availability of diverse second- and third-generation sequencing technologies enables the rapid determination of the sequences of bacterial genomes. However, identifying the sequencing technology most suitable for producing a finished genome with multiple chromosomes remains a challenge. We evaluated the abilities of the following three second-generation sequencers: Roche 454 GS Junior (GS Jr), Life Technologies Ion PGM (Ion PGM), and Illumina MiSeq (MiSeq) and a third-generation sequencer, the Pacific Biosciences RS sequencer (PacBio), by sequencing and assembling the genome of Vibrio parahaemolyticus, which consists of a 5-Mb genome comprising two circular chromosomes.

Results

We sequenced the genome of V. parahaemolyticus with GS Jr, Ion PGM, MiSeq, and PacBio and performed de novo assembly with several genome assemblers. Although GS Jr generated the longest mean read length of 418 bp among the second-generation sequencers, the maximum contig length of the best assembly from GS Jr was 165 kbp, and the number of contigs was 309. Single runs of Ion PGM and MiSeq produced data of considerably greater sequencing coverage, 279× and 1,927×, respectively. The optimized result for Ion PGM contained 61 contigs assembled from reads of 77× coverage, and the longest contig was 895 kbp in size. Those for MiSeq were 34 contigs, 58× coverage, and 733 kbp, respectively. These results suggest that higher coverage depth is unnecessary for a better assembly result. We observed that multiple rRNA coding regions were fragmented in the assemblies from the second-generation sequencers, whereas PacBio generated two exceptionally long contigs of 3,288,561 and 1,875,537 bps, each of which was from a single chromosome, with 73× coverage and mean read length 3,119 bp, allowing us to determine the absolute positions of all rRNA operons.

Conclusions

PacBio outperformed the other sequencers in terms of the length of contigs and reconstructed the greatest portion of the genome, achieving a genome assembly of “finished grade” because of its long reads. It showed the potential to assemble more complex genomes with multiple chromosomes containing more repetitive sequences.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2164-15-699) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Sequencing and Analysis of the Pseudomonas fluorescens GcM5-1A Genome: A Pathogen Living in the Surface Coat of Bursaphelenchus xylophilus

It is known that several bacteria are adherent to the surface coat of pine wood nematode (Bursaphelenchus xylophilus), but their function and role in the pathogenesis of pine wilt disease remains debatable. The Pseudomonas fluorescens GcM5-1A is a bacterium isolated from the surface coat of pine wood nematodes. In previous studies, GcM5-1A was evident in connection with the pathogenicity of pine wilt disease. In this study, we report the de novo sequencing of the GcM5-1A genome. A 600-Mb collection of high-quality reads was obtained and assembled into sequence contigs spanning a 6.01-Mb length. Sequence annotation predicted 5,413 open reading frames, of which 2,988 were homologous to genes in the other four sequenced P. fluorescens isolates (SBW25, WH6, Pf0-1 and Pf-5) and 1,137 were unique to GcM5-1A. Phylogenetic studies and genome comparison revealed that GcM5-1A is more closely related to SBW25 and WH6 isolates than to Pf0-1 and Pf-5 isolates. Towards study of pathogenesis, we identified 79 candidate virulence factors in the genome of GcM5-1A, including the Alg, Fl, Waa gene families, and genes coding the major pathogenic protein fliC. In addition, genes for a complete T3SS system were identified in the genome of GcM5-1A. Such systems have proved to play a critical role in subverting and colonizing the host organisms of many gram-negative pathogenic bacteria. Although the functions of the candidate virulence factors need yet to be deciphered experimentally, the availability of this genome provides a basic platform to obtain informative clues to be addressed in future studies by the pine wilt disease research community.     

Pyrosequencing of the northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.) chloroplast genome reveals high quality polymorphisms for population management

Given the low intraspecific chloroplast diversity detected in northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.), more powerful genetic tools are necessary to accurately characterize Q. rubra chloroplast diversity and structure. We report the sequencing, assembly, and annotation of the chloroplast genome of northern red oak via pyrosequencing and a combination of de novo and reference-guided assembly (RGA). Chloroplast DNA from 16 individuals was separated into four MID-tagged pools for a Genome Sequencer 20 quarter-run (Roche Life Sciences, Indianapolis, IN, USA). A four-step assembly method was used to generate the Q. rubra chloroplast consensus sequence: (1) reads were assembled de novo into contigs, (2) de novo contigs were aligned to a reference genome and merged to produce a consensus sequence, (3) the consensus sequence was aligned to the reference sequence and gaps between contigs were filled with reference sequence to generate a "pseudoreference", and (4) reads were mapped to the pseudoreference using RGA to generate the draft chloroplast genome. One hundred percent of the pseudoreference sequence was covered with a minimum coverage of 2× and an average coverage of 43.75×. The 161,304-bp Q. rubra chloroplast genome draft sequence contained 137 genes and one rps19 pseudogene. The sequence was compared to that of Quercus robur and Q. nigra with 951 and 186 insertion/deletion or SNP polymorphisms detected, respectively. A total of 51 intraspecific polymorphisms were detected among four northern red oak individuals. The fully sequenced and annotated Q. rubra chloroplast genome containing locations of interspecific and intraspecific polymorphisms will be essential for studying population differentiation, phylogeography, and evolutionary history of this species as well as meeting management goals such as monitoring reintroduced populations, tracking wood products, and certifying seed lots and forests.     

Comparative genomic analysis of two Burkholderia glumae strains from different geographic origins reveals a high degree of plasticity in genome structure associated with genomic islands

Burkholderia glumae is the major causal agent of bacterial panicle blight of rice, a growing disease problem in global rice production. To better understand its genome-scale characteristics, the genome of the highly virulent B. glumae strain 336gr-1 isolated from Louisiana, USA was sequenced using the Illumina Genome Analyser II system. De novo assembled 336gr-1 contigs were aligned and compared with the previously sequenced genome of B. glumae strain BGR1, which was isolated from an infected rice plant in South Korea. Comparative analysis of the whole genomes of B. glumae 336gr-1 and B. glumae BGR1 revealed numerous unique genomic regions present only in one of the two strains. These unique regions contained accessory genes including mobile elements and phage-related genes, and some of the unique regions in B. glumae BGR1 corresponded to predicted genomic islands. In contrast, little variation was observed in known and potential virulence genes between the two genomes. The considerable amount of plasticity largely based on accessory genes and genome islands observed from the comparison of the genomes of these two strains of B. glumae may explain the versatility of this bacterial species in various environmental conditions and geographic locations.     

鲍曼不动杆菌携带前噬菌体的生物信息学分析

[目的] 预测并分析82株全基因组测序的鲍曼不动杆菌前噬菌体的携带情况，鉴定前噬菌体编码的抗生素耐药基因和毒力因子。[方法] 利用PHASTER （Phage Search Tool Enhanced Release）软件预测鲍曼不动杆菌携带的前噬菌体，采用CARD （The Comprehensive Antibiotic Research Database）和VFDB （Virulence Factors Database）在线分析软件预测前噬菌体编码的抗生素耐药基因和毒力因子。[结果] 预测到472条鲍曼不动杆菌前噬菌体，其中完整型前噬菌体201条，疑似型前噬菌体91条，缺陷型前噬菌体180条。平均每株鲍曼不动杆菌基因组中可携带至少2条完整型前噬菌体。每株鲍曼不动杆菌所携带的全部前噬菌体占其基因组比例约为4%-6%。29条前噬菌体携带77个耐药基因，耐药表型共有14种，分别来自15个不同的家族，涵盖6种抗生素耐药的作用机制。132条前噬菌体编码毒力基因，归类为38种毒力基因和34种毒力因子。不同类型的前噬菌体普遍携带1-2种毒力因子，少数前噬菌体携带3种及以上毒力因子。分析毒力因子可能的宿主来源构成比发现，除鲍曼不动杆菌外，脑膜炎奈瑟菌、痢疾志贺氏菌、嗜肺军团菌及其亚种等也有较高的结构比例，是可能的宿主来源。[结论] 鲍曼不动杆菌普遍携带前噬菌体，但前噬菌体基因在鲍曼不动杆菌基因组中所占比例不高。部分前噬菌体携带抗生素耐药基因，以氨基糖苷类、磺胺类及β-内酰胺类耐药为主。约30%的前噬菌体携带毒力基因。前噬菌体可能在鲍曼不动杆菌抗生素耐药性的获得、传播及致病性演变中发挥重要作用。     

Draft Genome Sequence of the Quality Control Strain Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212

Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, a vancomycin-sensitive strain, has been extensively used as a representative control strain for clinical and laboratory experiments. Here we report the draft genome and annotation of this strain, containing 3,027,060 bp, with a G+C content of 37.2% in 126 contigs (≥500 bp).     

2016-2017年宁夏地区牛源金黄色葡萄球菌的全基因组分析

[目的] 了解宁夏地区奶牛乳腺炎金黄色葡萄球菌（Staphylococcus aureus,SA）代表菌株的基因组序列基本特征,进一步探究其耐药基因型、毒力及进化关系,为兽医临床防治提供理论依据。[方法] 采用纸片法对97株金黄色葡萄球菌临床分离株进行抗菌药物敏感性试验,同时进行葡萄球菌蛋白A（Staphylococcus aureus protein A,spa）分型、多位点序列分型（multilocus sequence typing,MLST）,根据分型结果选取16株代表菌株进行全基因组测序,并对获得的测序序列进行处理分析。[结果] 药敏试验结果显示97株分离株对18种抗菌药物存在不同程度的耐药,其中9株耐甲氧西林金黄色葡萄球菌（methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus,MRSA）对青霉素、氨苄西林、苯唑西林、头孢噻呋、磺胺异噁唑、红霉素、庆大霉素和克林霉素等8种抗菌药物完全耐药,甲氧西林敏感金黄色葡萄球菌（methicillin-sensitiveStaphylococcus aureus,MSSA）菌株对青霉素、氨苄西林、磺胺异噁唑耐药率较高。耐药基因数据库（antibiotic resistance genes database,ARDB）注释分析显示16株代表菌株共携带21种耐药基因,其中norA、tet38、bacA、mepA的携带率较高,与药敏试验结果具有一定的相关性。毒力基因数据库（virulence factors of pathogenic bacteria,VFDB）注释分析显示所有菌株携带多种与粘附、宿主免疫逃逸、分泌、胞外酶编码、铁摄取等疾病相关的毒力基因,MRSA菌株均携带较多毒力因子,MSSA菌株携带毒力因子数目不等。基因岛预测结果显示16株代表菌株存在不同数量的基因岛且MRSA菌株携带基因岛数目及毒力基因岛较多,但耐药基因岛数目与MSSA差异不明显。SNP分析结果显示部分分离株同源性较高,同源性较高的两株MRSA的全基因组基本序列特征差异较小,携带的耐药、毒力基因情况相似。[结论] 宁夏地区牛源SA分离株耐药性情况严重且具有较高的毒力水平,本研究为家畜相关MRSA（livestock-associated MRSA,LA-MRSA）与MSSA基因组序列信息的比较分析及宁夏地区SA感染的临床防控提供参考依据。     

Genome-wide analysis of the role of GlnR in Streptomyces venezuelae provides new insights into global nitrogen regulation in actinomycetes

Background

Knowledge of the origins, distribution, and inheritance of variation in the malaria parasite (Plasmodium falciparum) genome is crucial for understanding its evolution; however the 81% (A+T) genome poses challenges to high-throughput sequencing technologies. We explore the viability of the Roche 454 Genome Sequencer FLX (GS FLX) high throughput sequencing technology for both whole genome sequencing and fine-resolution characterization of genetic exchange in malaria parasites.

Results

We present a scheme to survey recombination in the haploid stage genomes of two sibling parasite clones, using whole genome pyrosequencing that includes a sliding window approach to predict recombination breakpoints. Whole genome shotgun (WGS) sequencing generated approximately 2 million reads, with an average read length of approximately 300 bp. De novo assembly using a combination of WGS and 3 kb paired end libraries resulted in contigs ≤ 34 kb. More than 8,000 of the 24,599 SNP markers identified between parents were genotyped in the progeny, resulting in a marker density of approximately 1 marker/3.3 kb and allowing for the detection of previously unrecognized crossovers (COs) and many non crossover (NCO) gene conversions throughout the genome.

Conclusions

By sequencing the 23 Mb genomes of two haploid progeny clones derived from a genetic cross at more than 30× coverage, we captured high resolution information on COs, NCOs and genetic variation within the progeny genomes. This study is the first to resequence progeny clones to examine fine structure of COs and NCOs in malaria parasites.     

Draft genome sequence of Gluconobacter thailandicus NBRC 3257

Gluconobacter thailandicus strain NBRC 3257, isolated from downy cherry (Prunus tomentosa), is a strict aerobic rod-shaped Gram-negative bacterium. Here, we report the features of this organism, together with the draft genome sequence and annotation. The draft genome sequence is composed of 107 contigs for 3,446,046 bp with 56.17% G+C content and contains 3,360 protein-coding genes and 54 RNA genes.     

A BAC-based integrated linkage map of the silkworm Bombyx mori

Background

In 2004, draft sequences of the model lepidopteran Bombyx mori were reported using whole-genome shotgun sequencing. Because of relatively shallow genome coverage, the silkworm genome remains fragmented, hampering annotation and comparative genome studies. For a more complete genome analysis, we developed extended scaffolds combining physical maps with improved genetic maps.

Results

We mapped 1,755 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers from bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) end sequences onto 28 linkage groups using a recombining male backcross population, yielding an average inter-SNP distance of 0.81 cM (about 270 kilobases). We constructed 6,221 contigs by fingerprinting clones from three BAC libraries digested with different restriction enzymes, and assigned a total of 724 single copy genes to them by BLAST (basic local alignment search tool) search of the BAC end sequences and high-density BAC filter hybridization using expressed sequence tags as probes. We assigned 964 additional expressed sequence tags to linkage groups by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of a nonrecombining female backcross population. Altogether, 361.1 megabases of BAC contigs and singletons were integrated with a map containing 1,688 independent genes. A test of synteny using Oxford grid analysis with more than 500 silkworm genes revealed six versus 20 silkworm linkage groups containing eight or more orthologs of Apis versus Tribolium, respectively.

Conclusion

The integrated map contains approximately 10% of predicted silkworm genes and has an estimated 76% genome coverage by BACs. This provides a new resource for improved assembly of whole-genome shotgun data, gene annotation and positional cloning, and will serve as a platform for comparative genomics and gene discovery in Lepidoptera and other insects.     

Draft genome sequence of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens HB-26

Bacillus amyloliquefaciens HB-26, a Gram-positive bacterium was isolated from soil in China. SDS-PAGE analysis showed this strain secreted six major protein bands of 65, 60, 55, 34, 25 and 20 kDa. A bioassay of this strain reveals that it shows specific activity against P. brassicae and nematode. Here we describe the features of this organism, together with the draft genome sequence and annotation. The 3,989,358 bp long genome (39 contigs) contains 4,001 protein-coding genes and 80 RNA genes.     

CoryneBase: Corynebacterium Genomic Resources and Analysis Tools at Your Fingertips

Corynebacteria are used for a wide variety of industrial purposes but some species are associated with human diseases. With increasing number of corynebacterial genomes having been sequenced, comparative analysis of these strains may provide better understanding of their biology, phylogeny, virulence and taxonomy that may lead to the discoveries of beneficial industrial strains or contribute to better management of diseases. To facilitate the ongoing research of corynebacteria, a specialized central repository and analysis platform for the corynebacterial research community is needed to host the fast-growing amount of genomic data and facilitate the analysis of these data. Here we present CoryneBase, a genomic database for Corynebacterium with diverse functionality for the analysis of genomes aimed to provide: (1) annotated genome sequences of Corynebacterium where 165,918 coding sequences and 4,180 RNAs can be found in 27 species; (2) access to comprehensive Corynebacterium data through the use of advanced web technologies for interactive web interfaces; and (3) advanced bioinformatic analysis tools consisting of standard BLAST for homology search, VFDB BLAST for sequence homology search against the Virulence Factor Database (VFDB), Pairwise Genome Comparison (PGC) tool for comparative genomic analysis, and a newly designed Pathogenomics Profiling Tool (PathoProT) for comparative pathogenomic analysis. CoryneBase offers the access of a range of Corynebacterium genomic resources as well as analysis tools for comparative genomics and pathogenomics. It is publicly available at http://corynebacterium.um.edu.my/.     

Genome sequence of Ensifer medicae strain WSM1369; an effective microsymbiont of the annual legume Medicago sphaerocarpos

Ensifer medicae WSM1369 is an aerobic, motile, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming rod that can exist as a soil saprophyte or as a legume microsymbiont of Medicago. WSM1369 was isolated in 1993 from a nodule recovered from the roots of Medicago sphaerocarpos growing at San Pietro di Rudas, near Aggius in Sardinia (Italy). WSM1369 is an effective microsymbiont of the annual forage legumes M. polymorpha and M. sphaerocarpos. Here we describe the features of E. medicae WSM1369, together with genome sequence information and its annotation. The 6,402,557 bp standard draft genome is arranged into 307 scaffolds of 307 contigs containing 6,656 protein-coding genes and 79 RNA-only encoding genes. This rhizobial genome is one of 100 sequenced as part of the DOE Joint Genome Institute 2010 Genomic Encyclopedia for Bacteria and Archaea-Root Nodule Bacteria (GEBA-RNB) project.     

Evaluation of Different Reference Based Annotation Strategies Using RNA-Seq – A Case Study in Drososphila pseudoobscura

RNA-Seq is a powerful tool for the annotation of genomes, in particular for the identification of isoforms and UTRs. Nevertheless, several software tools exist and no standard strategy to obtain a reliable annotation is yet established. We tested different combinations of the most commonly used reference-based alignment tools (TopHat, GSNAP) in combination with two frequently used reference-based assemblers (Cufflinks, Scripture) and evaluated the potential of RNA-Seq to improve the annotation of Drosophila pseudoobscura. While GSNAP maps a higher proportion of reads, TopHat resulted in a more accurate annotation when used in combination with Cufflinks. Scripture had the lowest sensitivity. Interestingly, after subsampling to the same coverage for GSNAP and TopHat, we find that both mappers have similar performance, implying that the advantage of TopHat is mainly an artifact of the lower coverage. Overall, we observed a low concordance among the different approaches tested both at junction and isoform levels. Using data from both sexes of two adult strains of D. pseudoobscura we detected alternative splicing for about 30% of the FlyBase multiple-exon genes. Moreover, we extended the boundaries for 6523 genes (about 40%). We annotated 669 new genes, 45% of them with splicing evidence. Most of the new genes are located on unassembled contigs, reflecting their incomplete annotation. Finally, we identified 99 additional new genes that are not represented in the current genome contigs of D. pseudoobscura, probably due to location in genomic regions that are difficult to assemble (e.g. heterochromatic regions).