title: Ongoing genome reduction in Mycobacterium ulcerans.
abstract: Elucidation of the transmission, epidemiology, and evolution of Mycobacterium ulcerans, the causative agent of Buruli ulcer, is hampered by the striking lack of genetic diversity of this emerging pathogen. However, by using a prototype plasmid-based microarray that covered 10% of the genome, we found multiple genomic DNA deletions among 30 M. ulcerans clinical isolates of diverse geographic origins. Many of the changes appear to have been mediated by insertion sequence (IS) elements IS2404 and IS2606, which have high copy numbers. Classification of the deleted genes according to their biological functions supports the hypothesis that M. ulcerans has recently evolved from the generalist environmental M. marinum to become a niche-adapted specialist. The substantial genomic diversity, along with a prototype microarray that covered a small portion of the genome, suggests that a genome-wide microarray will make available a genetic fingerprinting method with the high resolution required for microepidemiologic studies.
authors.affiliation: Swiss Tropical Institute, Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rondini
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Käser
authors.forename: Timothy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Stinear
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tessier
authors.forename: Cyrill
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mangold
authors.forename: Gregor
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dernick
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Naegeli
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Portaels
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Certa
authors.forename: Gerd
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pluschke
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D054312:Buruli Ulcer / Q000382:microbiology*; D002876:Chromosomes, Bacterial; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D014644:Genetic Variation; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D019910:Mycobacterium marinum / Q000235:genetics; D019911:Mycobacterium ulcerans / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D013045:Species Specificity; D014774:Virulence / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D004251:DNA Transposable Elements