GI-type T4SS-mediated horizontal transfer of the 89K pathogenicity island in epidemic Streptococcus suis serotype 2.
Pathogenicity islands (PAIs), a distinct type of genomic island (GI), play important roles in the rapid adaptation and increased virulence of pathogens. 89K is a newly identified PAI in epidemic Streptococcus suis isolates that are related to the two recent large-scale outbreaks of human infection in China. However, its mechanism of evolution and contribution to the epidemic spread of S. suis 2 remain unknown. In this study, the potential for mobilization of 89K was evaluated, and its putative transfer mechanism was investigated. We report that 89K can spontaneously excise to form an extrachromosomal circular product. The precise excision is mediated by an 89K-borne integrase through site-specific recombination, with help from an excisionase. The 89K excision intermediate acts as a substrate for lateral transfer to non-89K S. suis 2 recipients, where it reintegrates site-specifically into the target site. The conjugal transfer of 89K occurred via a GI type IV secretion system (T4SS) encoded in 89K, at a frequency of 10(-6) transconjugants per donor. This is the first demonstration of horizontal transfer of a Gram-positive PAI mediated by a GI-type T4SS. We propose that these genetic events are important in the emergence, pathogenesis and persistence of epidemic S. suis 2 strains.
CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
Ming
M
Li
Xiaodong
X
Shen
Jinghua
J
Yan
Huiming
H
Han
Beiwen
B
Zheng
Di
D
Liu
Hao
H
Cheng
Yan
Y
Zhao
Xiancai
X
Rao
Changjun
C
Wang
Jiaqi
J
Tang
Fuquan
F
Hu
George F
GF
Gao
D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D001483:Base Sequence; D003227:Conjugation, Genetic; D058872:Epidemics; D022761:Gene Transfer, Horizontal; D044404:Genomic Islands; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D017011:Streptococcus suis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
D001426:Bacterial Proteins
PLoS One. 2007 Mar 21;2(3):e315
17375201
Mol Microbiol. 2002 Nov;46(3):601-10
12410819
J Bacteriol. 2003 Sep;185(17):5045-54
12923077
Mol Microbiol. 1999 Jun;32(6):1239-53
10383764
Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2009 Sep 27;364(1530):2725-37
19687041
J Bacteriol. 2003 Aug;185(15):4530-8
12867462
J Biol Chem. 2001 Jan 26;276(4):2372-9
11054423
Infect Immun. 2007 Sep;75(9):4541-51
17576754
Mol Microbiol. 2007 Aug;65(4):1034-48
17640271
Mol Microbiol. 2002 Jul;45(1):1-8
12100543
Zoonoses Public Health. 2009 Nov;56(9-10):506-14
19538458
Mol Microbiol. 2007 Jan;63(2):530-44
17163979
Bioinformatics. 2006 May 1;22(9):1072-9
16303795
PLoS Med. 2006 May;3(5):e151
16584289
Mol Microbiol. 2006 Nov;62(3):723-34
17076666
Prog Nucleic Acid Res Mol Biol. 1996;54:197-251
8768076
Anim Health Res Rev. 2007 Jun;8(1):29-45
17692141
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2006 Dec 26;103(52):19830-5
17179047
J Mol Biol. 2004 Apr 23;338(2):229-40
15066428
J Microbiol Methods. 2004 Mar;56(3):401-12
14967232
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003 Sep 2;100(18):10465-70
12925737
Microbiol Mol Biol Rev. 2009 Dec;73(4):775-808
19946141
Cell Microbiol. 2008 Dec;10(12):2377-86
18549454
Mol Microbiol. 1997 Aug;25(3):509-16
9302013
Annu Rev Biochem. 1995;64:141-69
7574478
Trends Microbiol. 2000 Aug;8(8):354-60
10920394
Mol Microbiol. 2004 Dec;54(5):1199-211
15554962
J Bacteriol. 2009 Feb;191(3):720-7
19028894
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2007 Dec 11;104(50):20019-24
18056647
Nucleic Acids Res. 2004 Jan 1;32(Database issue):D55-8
14681358
Mol Microbiol. 2005 Mar;55(6):1911-24
15752209
FEMS Microbiol Rev. 2004 Feb;28(1):79-100
14975531
Plasmid. 2009 Jan;61(1):65-70
18848959
Nucleic Acids Res. 1997 Sep 15;25(18):3605-14
9278480
J Mol Biol. 1996 Nov 22;264(1):56-67
8950267
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008 Oct 14;105(41):15961-6
18832470
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2005 Feb 1;102(5):1685-90
15668378
FEBS J. 2008 Jan;275(1):198-206
18067578
J Bacteriol. 2006 Jun;188(11):4037-50
16707695
J Bacteriol. 2008 Apr;190(7):2368-78
18223091
Mol Microbiol. 2004 Jun;52(5):1329-36
15165236
PLoS One. 2009 Jul 15;4(7):e6072
19603075
PLoS One. 2008 May 07;3(5):e2080
18461172
Microbiol Rev. 1984 Mar;48(1):24-41
6201705
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1998 Jun 9;95(12):7057-62
9618538
J Biol Chem. 1985 Jun 10;260(11):6999-7007
2987239
Nucleic Acids Res. 1993 Sep 25;21(19):4563-8
8233790
Nucleic Acids Res. 1998 Jan 15;26(2):391-406
9421491
Trends Microbiol. 2010 Mar;18(3):124-31
20071175
J Bacteriol. 1997 May;179(10):3085-94
9150199
FEMS Microbiol Rev. 2009 Mar;33(2):376-93
19178566
Appl Environ Microbiol. 2007 Dec;73(23):7622-8
17933944
Nat Rev Microbiol. 2005 Sep;3(9):711-21
16138099
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Jul 6;107(27):12269-74
20566881
J Bacteriol. 2007 Sep;189(18):6551-63
17631630
Annu Rev Microbiol. 2005;59:451-85
16153176