title: Persistence of a dominant bovine lineage of group B Streptococcus reveals genomic signatures of host adaptation.
abstract: Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a host-generalist species, most notably causing disease in humans and cattle. However, the differential adaptation of GBS to its two main hosts, and the risk of animal to human infection remain poorly understood. Despite improvements in control measures across Europe, GBS is still one of the main causative agents of bovine mastitis in Portugal. Here, by whole-genome analysis of 150 bovine GBS isolates we discovered that a single CC61 clone is spreading throughout Portuguese herds since at least the early 1990s, having virtually replaced the previous GBS population. Mutations within an iron/manganese transporter were independently acquired by all of the CC61 isolates, underlining a key adaptive strategy to persist in the bovine host. Lateral transfer of bacteriocin production and antibiotic resistance genes also underscored the contribution of the microbial ecology and genetic pool within the bovine udder environment to the success of this clone. Compared to strains of human origin, GBS evolves twice as fast in bovines and undergoes recurrent pseudogenizations of human-adapted traits. Our work provides new insights into the potentially irreversible adaptation of GBS to the bovine environment.
authors.affiliation: Institut Pasteur, Unité Evolution et Ecologie de la Résistance aux Antibiotiques, Paris, France.|CNRS UMR 3525, Paris, France.|Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Almeida
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências da Vida, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, UCIBIO - Unidade de Ciências Biomoleculares Aplicadas, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.
authors.forename: Cinthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Alves-Barroco
authors.affiliation: Institut Pasteur, Unité Evolution et Ecologie de la Résistance aux Antibiotiques, Paris, France.|CNRS UMR 3525, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sauvage
authors.affiliation: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Centro de Investigação Interdisciplinar em Sanidade Animal, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bexiga
authors.affiliation: CIBIO - Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO, Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, Vairão, Portugal.
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Albuquerque
authors.affiliation: CIBIO - Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO, Laboratório Associado, Universidade do Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, Vairão, Portugal.|Faculdade de Ciências, Departamento de Biologia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tavares
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências da Vida, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, UCIBIO - Unidade de Ciências Biomoleculares Aplicadas, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.
authors.forename: Ilda
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Santos-Sanches
authors.affiliation: Institut Pasteur, Unité Evolution et Ecologie de la Résistance aux Antibiotiques, Paris, France.|CNRS UMR 3525, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Glaser
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D023281:Genomics; D008297:Male; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D013292:Streptococcus agalactiae / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents