Epidemiological evidence for the role of the hemoglobin receptor, hmbR, in meningococcal virulence.

Conference item

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: Harrison, O; Evans, N; Blair, J; Grimes, H; Tinsley, C

• Publication status: Published
• Host title: The Journal of infectious diseases
• Volume: 200
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 94-98
• Publication date: 2009-07-01
• Event location: United States
• DOI: 10.1086/599377
• EISSN: 1537-6613
• ISSN: 0022-1899
• Keywords: Neisseria gonorrhoeae; Neisseria lactamica; Bacterial Proteins; Neisseria meningitidis; Meningococcal Infections; DNA Primers; Receptors, Cell Surface; Humans; Virulence