Yersinia pestis pFra shows biovar-specific differences and recent common ancestry with a Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi plasmid.

Journal article

Population genetic studies suggest that Yersinia pestis, the cause of plague, is a clonal pathogen that has recently emerged from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. Plasmid acquisition is likely to have been a key element in this evolutionary leap from an enteric to a flea-transmitted systemic pathogen. However, the origin of Y. pestis-specific plasmids remains obscure. We demonstrate specific plasmid rearrangements in different Y. pestis strains which distinguish Y. pestis bv. Orientalis strains from other biovars. We also present evidence for plasmid-associated DNA exchange between Y. pestis and the exclusively human pathogen Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi.

Authors: Prentice, M; James, K; Parkhill, J; Baker, S; Stevens, K

• Publication status: Published
• Journal: Journal of bacteriology
• Volume: 183
• Issue: 8
• Pages: 2586-2594
• Publication date: 2001-04-01
• DOI: 10.1128/jb.183.8.2586-2594.2001
• EISSN: 1098-5530
• ISSN: 0021-9193
• Language: English
• Keywords: Plasmids; Molecular Sequence Data; Evolution, Molecular; Salmonella typhi; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Animals; Yersinia pestis; Gene Transfer, Horizontal; Humans; DNA Transposable Elements; Polymerase Chain Reaction; DNA, Bacterial