title: Distribution of pilus islands in Streptococcus agalactiae that cause human infections: insights into evolution and implication for vaccine development.
abstract: At least one pilus island, PI-1 (70%), PI-2a (79%), or PI-2b (21%), was found among 898 Streptococcus agalactiae (group B streptococcus [GBS]) isolates recovered from humans, supporting the use of pilus proteins in vaccines. The stability and dominance of PI-1 and PI-2a in multiple serotypes and founder multilocus sequence types disseminated worldwide suggest it could be the PI combination present in ancestral GBS human pathogens.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Microbiologia, Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: E R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Martins
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Andreu
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Melo-Cristino
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ramirez
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D010861:Fimbriae, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D012703:Serotyping; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000276:immunology*; D022541:Streptococcal Vaccines; D013292:Streptococcus agalactiae / Q000145:classification / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D022541:Streptococcal Vaccines