Rapid pneumococcal evolution in response to clinical interventions.

Journal article

Epidemiological studies of the naturally transformable bacterial pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae have previously been confounded by high rates of recombination. Sequencing 240 isolates of the PMEN1 (Spain(23F)-1) multidrug-resistant lineage enabled base substitutions to be distinguished from polymorphisms arising through horizontal sequence transfer. More than 700 recombinations were detected, with genes encoding major antigens frequently affected. Among these were 10 capsule-switching even...

Expand abstract

Authors: Croucher, N; Harris, SR; Fraser, C; Quail, M; Burton, J

• Publication status: Published
• Journal: Science (New York, N.Y.)
• Volume: 331
• Issue: 6016
• Pages: 430-434
• Publication date: 2011-01-01
• DOI: 10.1126/science.1198545
• EISSN: 1095-9203
• ISSN: 0036-8075
• Language: English
• Keywords: Serotyping; Recombination, Genetic; Selection, Genetic; Adaptation, Physiological; Antigenic Variation; DNA Transposable Elements; Streptococcus Phages; Molecular Epidemiology; Phylogeography; Evolution, Molecular; Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; Humans; Genome, Bacterial; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Pneumococcal Infections; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; Streptococcus pneumoniae; Prophages; Phylogeny; Pneumococcal Vaccines