Common virulence factors for bacterial pathogenicity in plants and animals

Science. 1995 Jun 30;268(5219):1899-902. doi: 10.1126/science.7604262.

Abstract

A Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain (UCBPP-PA14) is infectious both in an Arabidopsis thaliana leaf infiltration model and in a mouse full-thickness skin burn model. UCBPP-PA14 exhibits ecotype specificity for Arabidopsis, causing a range of symptoms from none to severe in four different ecotypes. In the mouse model, UCBPP-PA14 is as lethal as other well-studied P. aeruginosa strains. Mutations in the UCBPP-PA14 toxA, plcS, and gacA genes resulted in a significant reduction in pathogenicity in both hosts, indicating that these genes encode virulence factors required for the full expression of pathogenicity in both plants and animals.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • ADP Ribose Transferases*
  • Animals
  • Arabidopsis / microbiology*
  • Bacterial Proteins / genetics
  • Bacterial Toxins*
  • Base Sequence
  • Burns / complications
  • Exotoxins / genetics
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Mutation
  • Phospholipases / genetics
  • Plant Diseases / microbiology*
  • Pseudomonas Infections / microbiology*
  • Pseudomonas aeruginosa / genetics
  • Pseudomonas aeruginosa / growth & development
  • Pseudomonas aeruginosa / pathogenicity*
  • Pseudomonas aeruginosa Exotoxin A
  • Virulence / genetics
  • Virulence Factors*

Substances

  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Bacterial Toxins
  • Exotoxins
  • GacA protein, Bacteria
  • Virulence Factors
  • ADP Ribose Transferases
  • Phospholipases