Menu
July 7, 2019  |  

The Glanville fritillary genome retains an ancient karyotype and reveals selective chromosomal fusions in Lepidoptera.

Previous studies have reported that chromosome synteny in Lepidoptera has been well conserved, yet the number of haploid chromosomes varies widely from 5 to 223. Here we report the genome (393?Mb) of the Glanville fritillary butterfly (Melitaea cinxia; Nymphalidae), a widely recognized model species in metapopulation biology and eco-evolutionary research, which has the putative ancestral karyotype of n=31. Using a phylogenetic analyses of Nymphalidae and of other Lepidoptera, combined with orthologue-level comparisons of chromosomes, we conclude that the ancestral lepidopteran karyotype has been n=31 for at least 140?My. We show that fusion chromosomes have retained the ancestral chromosome segments and very few rearrangements have occurred across the fusion sites. The same, shortest ancestral chromosomes have independently participated in fusion events in species with smaller karyotypes. The short chromosomes have higher rearrangement rate than long ones. These characteristics highlight distinctive features of the evolutionary dynamics of butterflies and moths.


July 7, 2019  |  

SSPACE-LongRead: scaffolding bacterial draft genomes using long read sequence information.

The recent introduction of the Pacific Biosciences RS single molecule sequencing technology has opened new doors to scaffolding genome assemblies in a cost-effective manner. The long read sequence information is promised to enhance the quality of incomplete and inaccurate draft assemblies constructed from Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) data.Here we propose a novel hybrid assembly methodology that aims to scaffold pre-assembled contigs in an iterative manner using PacBio RS long read information as a backbone. On a test set comprising six bacterial draft genomes, assembled using either a single Illumina MiSeq or Roche 454 library, we show that even a 50× coverage of uncorrected PacBio RS long reads is sufficient to drastically reduce the number of contigs. Comparisons to the AHA scaffolder indicate our strategy is better capable of producing (nearly) complete bacterial genomes.The current work describes our SSPACE-LongRead software which is designed to upgrade incomplete draft genomes using single molecule sequences. We conclude that the recent advances of the PacBio sequencing technology and chemistry, in combination with the limited computational resources required to run our program, allow to scaffold genomes in a fast and reliable manner.


July 7, 2019  |  

Dissemination of 16S rRNA methylase ArmA-producing acinetobacter baumannii and emergence of OXA-72 carbapenemase coproducers in Japan.

Forty-nine clinical isolates of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii were obtained from 12 hospitals in 7 prefectures throughout Japan. Molecular phylogenetic analysis revealed the clonal spread of A. baumannii sequence type 208 (ST208) and ST455 isolates harboring the armA gene and ST512 harboring the armA and blaOXA-72 genes. These findings show that A. baumannii isolates harboring armA are disseminated throughout Japan, and this is the first report to show that A. baumannii strains harboring blaOXA-72 and armA are emerging in hospitals in Japan.


July 7, 2019  |  

De novo assembly and characterization of the complete chloroplast genome of radish (Raphanus sativus L.).

Radish (Raphanus sativus L.) is an edible root vegetable crop that is cultivated worldwide and whose genome has been sequenced. Here we report the complete nucleotide sequence of the radish cultivar WK10039 chloroplast (cp) genome, along with a de novo assembly strategy using whole genome shotgun sequence reads obtained by next generation sequencing. The radish cp genome is 153,368 bp in length and has a typical quadripartite structure, composed of a pair of inverted repeat regions (26,217 bp each), a large single copy region (83,170 bp), and a small single copy region (17,764 bp). The radish cp genome contains 87 predicted protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, and 8 rRNA genes. Sequence analysis revealed the presence of 91 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) in the radish cp genome. Phylogenetic analysis of 62 protein-coding gene sequences from the 17 cp genomes of the Brassicaceae family suggested that the radish cp genome is most closely related to the cp genomes of Brassica rapa and Brassicanapus. Comparisons with the B. rapa and B. napus cp genomes revealed highly divergent intergenic sequences and introns that can potentially be developed as diagnostic cp markers. Synonymous and nonsynonymous substitutions of cp genes suggested that nucleotide substitutions have occurred at similar rates in most genes. The complete sequence of the radish cp genome would serve as a valuable resource for the development of new molecular markers and the study of the phylogenetic relationships of Raphanus species in the Brassicaceae family. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.


July 7, 2019  |  

Complete genome sequence for the shellfish pathogen Vibrio coralliilyticus RE98 isolated from a shellfish hatchery.

Vibrio coralliilyticus is a pathogen of corals and larval shellfish. Publications on strain RE98 list it as a Vibrio tubiashii; however, whole genome sequencing confirms RE98 as V. coralliilyticus containing a total of 6,037,824 bp consisting of two chromosomes (3,420,228 and 1,917,482 bp) and two megaplasmids (380,714 and 319,400 bp). Copyright © 2014 Richards et al.


July 7, 2019  |  

Comparative genomics of the Campylobacter lari group.

The Campylobacter lari group is a phylogenetic clade within the epsilon subdivision of the Proteobacteria and is part of the thermotolerant Campylobacter spp., a division within the genus that includes the human pathogen Campylobacter jejuni. The C. lari group is currently composed of five species (C. lari, Campylobacter insulaenigrae, Campylobacter volucris, Campylobacter subantarcticus, and Campylobacter peloridis), as well as a group of strains termed the urease-positive thermophilic Campylobacter (UPTC) and other C. lari-like strains. Here we present the complete genome sequences of 11 C. lari group strains, including the five C. lari group species, four UPTC strains, and a lari-like strain isolated in this study. The genome of C. lari subsp. lari strain RM2100 was described previously. Analysis of the C. lari group genomes indicates that this group is highly related at the genome level. Furthermore, these genomes are strongly syntenic with minor rearrangements occurring only in 4 of the 12 genomes studied. The C. lari group can be bifurcated, based on the flagella and flagellar modification genes. Genomic analysis of the UPTC strains indicated that these organisms are variable but highly similar, closely related to but distinct from C. lari. Additionally, the C. lari group contains multiple genes encoding hemagglutination domain proteins, which are either contingency genes or linked to conserved contingency genes. Many of the features identified in strain RM2100, such as major deficiencies in amino acid biosynthesis and energy metabolism, are conserved across all 12 genomes, suggesting that these common features may play a role in the association of the C. lari group with coastal environments and watersheds. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution 2014. This work is written by US Government employees and is in the public domain in the US.


July 7, 2019  |  

Evolution and diversity of copy number variation in the great ape lineage.

Copy number variation (CNV) contributes to disease and has restructured the genomes of great apes. The diversity and rate of this process, however, have not been extensively explored among great ape lineages. We analyzed 97 deeply sequenced great ape and human genomes and estimate 16% (469 Mb) of the hominid genome has been affected by recent CNV. We identify a comprehensive set of fixed gene deletions (n = 340) and duplications (n = 405) as well as >13.5 Mb of sequence that has been specifically lost on the human lineage. We compared the diversity and rates of copy number and single nucleotide variation across the hominid phylogeny. We find that CNV diversity partially correlates with single nucleotide diversity (r(2) = 0.5) and recapitulates the phylogeny of apes with few exceptions. Duplications significantly outpace deletions (2.8-fold). The load of segregating duplications remains significantly higher in bonobos, Western chimpanzees, and Sumatran orangutans-populations that have experienced recent genetic bottlenecks (P = 0.0014, 0.02, and 0.0088, respectively). The rate of fixed deletion has been more clocklike with the exception of the chimpanzee lineage, where we observe a twofold increase in the chimpanzee-bonobo ancestor (P = 4.79 × 10(-9)) and increased deletion load among Western chimpanzees (P = 0.002). The latter includes the first genomic disorder in a chimpanzee with features resembling Smith-Magenis syndrome mediated by a chimpanzee-specific increase in segmental duplication complexity. We hypothesize that demographic effects, such as bottlenecks, have contributed to larger and more gene-rich segments being deleted in the chimpanzee lineage and that this effect, more generally, may account for episodic bursts in CNV during hominid evolution.


July 7, 2019  |  

Mutation in the C-di-AMP cyclase dacA affects fitness and resistance of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Faster growing and more virulent strains of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are increasingly displacing highly resistant MRSA. Elevated fitness in these MRSA is often accompanied by decreased and heterogeneous levels of methicillin resistance; however, the mechanisms for this phenomenon are not yet fully understood. Whole genome sequencing was used to investigate the genetic basis of this apparent correlation, in an isogenic MRSA strain pair that differed in methicillin resistance levels and fitness, with respect to growth rate. Sequencing revealed only one single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the diadenylate cyclase gene dacA in the faster growing but less resistant strain. Diadenylate cyclases were recently discovered to synthesize the new second messenger cyclic diadenosine monophosphate (c-di-AMP). Introduction of this mutation into the highly resistant but slower growing strain reduced resistance and increased its growth rate, suggesting a direct connection between the dacA mutation and the phenotypic differences of these strains. Quantification of cellular c-di-AMP revealed that the dacA mutation decreased c-di-AMP levels resulting in reduced autolysis, increased salt tolerance and a reduction in the basal expression of the cell wall stress stimulon. These results indicate that c-di-AMP affects cell envelope-related signalling in S. aureus. The influence of c-di-AMP on growth rate and methicillin resistance in MRSA indicate that altering c-di-AMP levels could be a mechanism by which MRSA strains can increase their fitness levels by reducing their methicillin resistance levels.


July 7, 2019  |  

Organelle_PBA, a pipeline for assembling chloroplast and mitochondrial genomes from PacBio DNA sequencing data.

The development of long-read sequencing technologies, such as single-molecule real-time (SMRT) sequencing by PacBio, has produced a revolution in the sequencing of small genomes. Sequencing organelle genomes using PacBio long-read data is a cost effective, straightforward approach. Nevertheless, the availability of simple-to-use software to perform the assembly from raw reads is limited at present.We present Organelle-PBA, a Perl program designed specifically for the assembly of chloroplast and mitochondrial genomes. For chloroplast genomes, the program selects the chloroplast reads from a whole genome sequencing pool, maps the reads to a reference sequence from a closely related species, and then performs read correction and de novo assembly using Sprai. Organelle-PBA completes the assembly process with the additional step of scaffolding by SSPACE-LongRead. The program then detects the chloroplast inverted repeats and reassembles and re-orients the assembly based on the organelle origin of the reference. We have evaluated the performance of the software using PacBio reads from different species, read coverage, and reference genomes. Finally, we present the assembly of two novel chloroplast genomes from the species Picea glauca (Pinaceae) and Sinningia speciosa (Gesneriaceae).Organelle-PBA is an easy-to-use Perl-based software pipeline that was written specifically to assemble mitochondrial and chloroplast genomes from whole genome PacBio reads. The program is available at https://github.com/aubombarely/Organelle_PBA .


July 7, 2019  |  

Comparative genomics and transcriptome analysis of Aspergillus niger and metabolic engineering for citrate production.

Despite a long and successful history of citrate production in Aspergillus niger, the molecular mechanism of citrate accumulation is only partially understood. In this study, we used comparative genomics and transcriptome analysis of citrate-producing strains-namely, A. niger H915-1 (citrate titer: 157?g?L(-1)), A1 (117?g?L(-1)), and L2 (76?g?L(-1))-to gain a genome-wide view of the mechanism of citrate accumulation. Compared with A. niger A1 and L2, A. niger H915-1 contained 92 mutated genes, including a succinate-semialdehyde dehydrogenase in the ?-aminobutyric acid shunt pathway and an aconitase family protein involved in citrate synthesis. Furthermore, transcriptome analysis of A. niger H915-1 revealed that the transcription levels of 479 genes changed between the cell growth stage (6?h) and the citrate synthesis stage (12?h, 24?h, 36?h, and 48?h). In the glycolysis pathway, triosephosphate isomerase was up-regulated, whereas pyruvate kinase was down-regulated. Two cytosol ATP-citrate lyases, which take part in the cycle of citrate synthesis, were up-regulated, and may coordinate with the alternative oxidases in the alternative respiratory pathway for energy balance. Finally, deletion of the oxaloacetate acetylhydrolase gene in H915-1 eliminated oxalate formation but neither influence on pH decrease nor difference in citrate production were observed.


July 7, 2019  |  

Whole-genome sequences of Mycobacterium tuberculosis TB282 and TB284, a widespread and a unique strain, respectively, identified in a previous study of tuberculosis transmission in central Los Angeles, California, USA.

We report here the genome sequences of two Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates previously identified in central Los Angeles, CA, in the 1990s using a PacBio platform. Isolate TB282 represents a large-cluster strain that caused 27% of the tuberculosis cases, while TB284 represents a strain that caused disease in only one patient. Copyright © 2017 Zhang and Yang.


July 7, 2019  |  

Analysis of serial isolates of mcr-1-positive Escherichia coli reveals a highly active ISApl1 transposon.

The emergence of a transferable colistin resistance gene (mcr-1) is of global concern. The insertion sequence ISApl1 is a key component in the mobilization of this gene, but its role remains poorly understood. Six Escherichia coli isolates were cultured from the same patient over the course of 1 month in Germany and the United States after a brief hospitalization in Bahrain for an unconnected illness. Four carried mcr-1 as determined by real-time PCR, but two were negative. Two additional mcr-1-negative E. coli isolates were collected during follow-up surveillance 9 months later. All isolates were analyzed by whole-genome sequencing (WGS). WGS revealed that the six initial isolates were composed of two distinct strains: an initial ST-617 E. coli strain harboring mcr-1 and a second, unrelated, mcr-1-negative ST-32 E. coli strain that emerged 2 weeks after hospitalization. Follow-up swabs taken 9 months later were negative for the ST-617 strain, but the mcr-1-negative ST-32 strain was still present. mcr-1 was associated with a single copy of ISApl1, located on a 64.5-kb IncI2 plasmid that shared >95% homology with other mcr-1 IncI2 plasmids. ISApl1 copy numbers ranged from 2 for the first isolate to 6 for the final isolate, but ISApl1 movement was independent of mcr-1 Some movement was accompanied by gene disruption, including the loss of genes encoding proteins involved in stress responses, arginine catabolism, and l-arabinose utilization. These data represent the first comprehensive analysis of ISApl1 movement in serial clinical isolates and reveal that, under certain conditions, ISApl1 is a highly active IS element whose movement may be detrimental to the host cell. Copyright © 2017 Snesrud et al.


July 7, 2019  |  

Complete genome sequence of Akkermansia glycaniphila strain PytT, a mucin-degrading specialist of the reticulated python gut.

Akkermansia glycaniphila is a novel Akkermansia species that was isolated from the intestine of the reticulated python and shares the capacity to degrade mucin with the human strain Akkermansia muciniphila Muc(T) Here, we report the complete genome sequence of strain Pyt(T) of 3,074,121 bp. The genomic analysis reveals genes for mucin degradation and aerobic respiration. Copyright © 2017 Ouwerkerk et al.


Talk with an expert

If you have a question, need to check the status of an order, or are interested in purchasing an instrument, we're here to help.