title: Identification of anthrax toxin genes in a Bacillus cereus associated with an illness resembling inhalation anthrax.
abstract: Bacillus anthracis is the etiologic agent of anthrax, an acute fatal disease among mammals. It was thought to differ from Bacillus cereus, an opportunistic pathogen and cause of food poisoning, by the presence of plasmids pXO1 and pXO2, which encode the lethal toxin complex and the poly-gamma-d-glutamic acid capsule, respectively. This work describes a non-B. anthracis isolate that possesses the anthrax toxin genes and is capable of causing a severe inhalation anthrax-like illness. Although initial phenotypic and 16S rRNA analysis identified this isolate as B. cereus, the rapid generation and analysis of a high-coverage draft genome sequence revealed the presence of a circular plasmid, named pBCXO1, with 99.6% similarity with the B. anthracis toxin-encoding plasmid, pXO1. Although homologues of the pXO2 encoded capsule genes were not found, a polysaccharide capsule cluster is encoded on a second, previously unidentified plasmid, pBC218. A/J mice challenged with B. cereus G9241 confirmed the virulence of this strain. These findings represent an example of how genomics could rapidly assist public health experts responding not only to clearly identified select agents but also to novel agents with similar pathogenic potentials. In this study, we combined a public health approach with genome analysis to provide insight into the correlation of phenotypic characteristics and their genetic basis.
authors.affiliation: Epidemiologic Investigations Laboratory, Meningitis and Special Pathogens Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road, MS G34, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.
authors.forename: Alex R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Hoffmaster
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ravel
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Rasko
authors.forename: Gail D
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Chapman
authors.forename: Michael D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Chute
authors.forename: Chung K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Marston
authors.forename: Barun K
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: De
authors.forename: Claudio T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Sacchi
authors.forename: Collette
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fitzgerald
authors.forename: Leonard W
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Mayer
authors.forename: Martin C J
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Maiden
authors.forename: Fergus G
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: Priest
authors.forename: Margaret
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Barker
authors.forename: Lingxia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Regina Z
authors.initials: RZ
authors.lastname: Cer
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rilstone
authors.forename: Scott N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Peterson
authors.forename: Robbin S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Weyant
authors.forename: Darrell R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Galloway
authors.forename: Timothy D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Read
authors.forename: Tanja
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Popovic
authors.forename: Claire M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Fraser
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000881:Anthrax / Q000209:etiology; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D001408:Bacillus anthracis / Q000145:classification / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics; D001409:Bacillus cereus / Q000145:classification / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000235:genetics*; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D023281:Genomics; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D010957:Plasmids / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; C030325:anthrax toxin