(Van Gijsegem et al., 1993)—and these systems differ from the sec-dependent pathway in that their effector moleSt. Louis, Missouri 63110 † Department of Biology cules lack a typical signal sequence. At the same location where LEE has inserted into entero-pathogenic strains (McDaniel et al., 1995) a distinct patho-genicity island, PAI-1, has been identified in a uropatho-" I am the beneficiary o...

Yersinia species were isolated from 65 of 223 free-living small mammals trapped in 10 regions on Honshu Island in Japan. Of the 65 strains isolated, 1 was Yersinia enterocolitica serovar O3, 8 were Y. enterocolitica O5, 6 were Y. enterocolitica O8, 3 were Y. enterocolitica O9, and 1 was Yersinia pseudotuberculosis 4b. Of the six Y. enterocolitica O8 strains, five were positive for autoagglutina...

The Hha/YmoA family of nucleoid-associated proteins is involved in gene regulation in enterobacteria. In Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, virulence genes required for intracellular growth are induced following host cell invasion but the proteins responsible for repressing these genes prior to host cell entry have not been fully identified. We demonstrate here that Hha is the major repre...

Nucleotide sequence analysis of an approximately 80-kb genomic region revealed an approximately 65-kb locus that bears hallmarks of a pathogenicity island. This locus includes homologues of a type IV secretion system, mobile genetic elements, and known virulence factors. Comparative studies with other Legionella pneumophila strains and serogroups indicated that this approximately 65-kb locus is...

Vibrio cholerae O1 Amazonia is a pathogen that was isolated from cholera-like diarrhea cases in at least two countries, Brazil and Ghana. Based on multilocus sequence analysis, this lineage belongs to a distinct profile compared to strains from El Tor and classical biotypes. The genomic analysis revealed that it contains Vibrio pathogenicity island 2 and a set of genes related to pathogenesis a...

A draft genome sequence of the plant pathogen Streptomyces acidiscabies 84-104, an emergent plant pathogen, is presented here. The genome is among the largest of streptomycetes, at more than 11 Mb, and encodes a 100-kb pathogenicity island (PAI) shared with other plant-pathogenic streptomycetes. The presence of this conserved PAI, and the remnants of a conserved integrase/recombinase at its 3' ...

A system of versatile insertion plasmids was constructed that permits efficient delivery of the target sites of an ultra-rare-cutting endonuclease and the recombinase FLP into preselected sites of the bacterial genome. With the help of this system, the pathogenicity island LEE of the Escherichia coli O157:H7 genome was excised and isolated in vitro, deleted in vivo, rescued as a plasmid, and tr...

HilA activates the transcription of genes on Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 (SPI1), which encodes a type III secretion system (TTSS). Previous studies showed that transposon insertions in orgC, a gene located on SPI1, increase hilA expression. We characterize the orgC gene product and show that it is secreted via the SPI1 TTSS. We propose a model whereby OrgC functions as a secreted represso...

T he whole genome sequence of Helicobacter pylori strain 26695 was published in 1997 and that of a second strain, J99, in 1999. 2 These publications moved H pylori research forward by a quantum leap. Comparing H pylori genes with genes of known function in other bacteria gave immediate insights into H pylori metabolism, structure, adaptive mechanisms, and virulence. Research became more focused...