title: Epidemiological evidence for the role of the hemoglobin receptor, hmbR, in meningococcal virulence.
abstract: The distribution of the hemoglobin receptor gene (hmbR) was investigated among disease and carriage Neisseria meningitidis isolates, revealing that the gene was detected at a significantly higher frequency among disease isolates than among carriage isolates. In isolates without hmbR, the locus was occupied by the cassettes exl2 or exl3 or by a "pseudo hmbR" gene, designated exl4. The hmbR locus exhibited characteristics of a pathogenicity island in published genomes of N. meningitidis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and Neisseria lactamica sequence type-640. These data are consistent with a role for the hmbR gene in meningococcal disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Odile B
authors.initials: OB
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.forename: Nicholas J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Evans
authors.forename: Jessica M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Blair
authors.forename: Holly S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Grimes
authors.forename: Colin R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Tinsley
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Nassif
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kriz
authors.forename: Roisin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ure
authors.forename: Steve J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Gray
authors.forename: Jeremy P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Derrick
authors.forename: Martin C J
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Maiden
authors.forename: Ian M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Feavers
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D017931:DNA Primers; D006801:Humans; D008589:Meningococcal Infections / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D009344:Neisseria gonorrhoeae / Q000235:genetics*; D042806:Neisseria lactamica / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity; D009345:Neisseria meningitidis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D014774:Virulence / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D017931:DNA Primers; C094109:HmbR protein, Neisseria meningitidis; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface