Features of Variable Number of Tandem Repeats in Yersinia pestis and the Development of a Hierarchical Genotyping Scheme
نویسندگان
چکیده
BACKGROUND Variable number of tandem repeats (VNTRs) that are widely distributed in the genome of Yersinia pestis proved to be useful markers for the genotyping and source-tracing of this notorious pathogen. In this study, we probed into the features of VNTRs in the Y. pestis genome and developed a simple hierarchical genotyping system based on optimized VNTR loci. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Capillary electrophoresis was used in this study for multi-locus VNTR analysis (MLVA) in 956 Y. pestis strains. The general features and genetic diversities of 88 VNTR loci in Y. pestis were analyzed with BioNumerics, and a "14+12" loci-based hierarchical genotyping system, which is compatible with single nucleotide polymorphism-based phylogenic analysis, was established. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE Appropriate selection of target loci reduces the impact of homoplasies caused by the rapid mutation rates of VNTR loci. The optimized "14+12" loci are highly discriminative in genotyping and source-tracing Y. pestis for molecular epidemiological or microbial forensic investigations with less time and lower cost. An MLVA genotyping datasets of representative strains will improve future research on the source-tracing and microevolution of Y. pestis.
منابع مشابه
Strain discrimination of Yersinia pestis using a SERS-based electrochemically driven melting curve analysis of variable number tandem repeat sequences.
Strain discrimination within genetically highly similar bacteria is critical for epidemiological studies and forensic applications. An electrochemically driven melting curve analysis monitored by SERS has been utilised to reliably discriminate strains of the bacterial pathogen Yersinia pestis, the causative agent of plague. DNA amplicons containing Variable Number Tandem Repeats (VNTRs) were ge...
متن کاملVNTR9 and VNTR10, two newly-found variable-number tandem repeat loci useful in MLVA genotyping of Bordetella pertussis
Background & Aims: Bordetella pertussis, the causative agent of whooping cough, continues to infect human hosts even in those populations where infants and children are routinely vaccinated. Causes of pertussis epidemiology are not fully identified unless strains of the pathogen are characterized by molecular means. Golbally, Multi Locus Variable Number of Tandem Repeats analysis (MLVA) has pro...
متن کاملDiverse Genotypes of Yersinia pestis Caused Plague in Madagascar in 2007
BACKGROUND Yersinia pestis is the causative agent of human plague and is endemic in various African, Asian and American countries. In Madagascar, the disease represents a significant public health problem with hundreds of human cases a year. Unfortunately, poor infrastructure makes outbreak investigations challenging. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS DNA was extracted directly from 93 clinical ...
متن کاملYersinia pestis Lineages in Mongolia
BACKGROUND Whole genome sequencing allowed the development of a number of high resolution sequence based typing tools for Yersinia (Y.) pestis. The application of these methods on isolates from most known foci worldwide and in particular from China and the Former Soviet Union has dramatically improved our understanding of the population structure of this species. In the current view, Y. pestis ...
متن کاملSpectrum of Phenylalanine Hydroxylase Gene Mutations in Hamadan and Lorestan Provinces of Iran and Their Associations with Variable Number of Tandem Repeat Alleles
Phenylketonuria (PKU) is one of the most common known inherited metabolic diseases. The present study aimed to investigate the status of molecular defects in phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene in western Iranian PKU patients (predominantly from Kermanshah, Hamadan, and Lorestan provinces) during 2014-2016. Additionally, the results were compared with similar studies in Iran. Nucleotide sequen...
متن کامل