Loading…

Locally Confined Clonal Complexes of Mycobacterium ulcerans in Two Buruli Ulcer Endemic Regions of Cameroon: e0003802

Background Mycobacterium ulcerans is the causative agent of the necrotizing skin disease Buruli ulcer (BU), which has been reported from over 30 countries worldwide. The majority of notified patients come from West African countries, such as Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Benin and Cameroon. All clinica...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:PLoS neglected tropical diseases 2015-06, Vol.9 (6)
Main Authors: Bolz, Miriam, Bratschi, Martin W, Kerber, Sarah, Minyem, Jacques C, Boock, Alphonse Um, Vogel, Moritz, Bayi, Pierre Franklin, Junghanss, Thomas, Brites, Daniela, Harris, Simon R, Parkhill, Julian, Pluschke, Gerd, Cabello, Araceli Lamelas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Background Mycobacterium ulcerans is the causative agent of the necrotizing skin disease Buruli ulcer (BU), which has been reported from over 30 countries worldwide. The majority of notified patients come from West African countries, such as Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Benin and Cameroon. All clinical isolates of M. ulcerans from these countries are closely related and their genomes differ only in a limited number of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Methodology/Principal Findings We performed a molecular epidemiological study with clinical isolates from patients from two distinct BU endemic regions of Cameroon, the Nyong and the Mapé river basins. Whole genome sequencing of the M. ulcerans strains from these two BU endemic areas revealed the presence of two phylogenetically distinct clonal complexes. The strains from the Nyong river basin were genetically more diverse and less closely related to the M. ulcerans strain circulating in Ghana and Benin than the strains causing BU in the Mapé river basin. Conclusions Our comparative genomic analysis revealed that M. ulcerans clones diversify locally by the accumulation of SNPs. Case isolates coming from more recently emerging BU endemic areas, such as the Mapé river basin, may be less diverse than populations from longer standing disease foci, such as the Nyong river basin. Exchange of strains between distinct endemic areas seems to be rare and local clonal complexes can be easily distinguished by whole genome sequencing.
ISSN:1935-2727
1935-2735
DOI:10.1371/journal.pntd.0003802