ArticlePloS one2015
Microevolution of Anthrax from a Young Ancestor (M.A.Y.A.) Suggests a Soil-Borne Life Cycle of Bacillus anthracis.
Article in PloS one, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers.
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Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed.
- Investigating Bacillus anthracis genomic diversity and trait-specific lineages in an endemic area in northern Tanzania through a combination of traditional and culture-free sequencing approaches.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2026Article
- Development of Nanopore amplicon sequencing method for culture-free genotyping ofFrontiers in microbiology · 2026Article
- InvestigatingbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Article
- Persistence in time: the hunt forApplied and environmental microbiology · 2025Article
- Archival and Newly Isolated HistoricalPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- New Insights into the Phylogeny of the A.Br.161 ("A.Br.Heroin") Clade ofPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Spanish Outbreak Isolates Bridge Phylogenies of European and AmericanMicroorganisms · 2023Article
- Reoccurring Bovine Anthrax in Germany on the Same Pasture after 12 Years.Journal of clinical microbiology · 2022Article
- Population genomics ofMicrobial genomics · 2022Article
- Ultrasensitive Detection ofInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2021Article
- Rapid Microscopic Detection ofMicroorganisms · 2020Article
- Review: The risk of contracting anthrax from spore-contaminated soil - A military medical perspective.European journal of microbiology & immunology · 2020Article
- Coalescence modeling of intrainfectionProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2020Article
- A Rare Glimpse into the Past of the Anthrax PathogenMicroorganisms · 2020Article
- Whole Genome Sequencing for StudyingMicroorganisms · 2020Article
- Phylogenetic Placement of Isolates Within the Trans-Eurasian Clade A.Br.008/009 ofMicroorganisms · 2019Article
- Genotyping and phylogenetic location of one clinical isolate of Bacillus anthracis isolated from a human in Russia.BMC microbiology · 2019Article
- The possible zoonotic diseases transferring from pig to human in Vietnam.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2019Review
- TheMicrobiology spectrum · 2019Review
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Authors and funding
15 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
During an anthrax outbreak at the Pollino National Park (Basilicata, Italy) in 2004, diseased cattle were buried and from these anthrax-foci Bacillus anthracis endospores still diffuse to the surface resulting in local accumulations. Recent data suggest that B. anthracis multiplies in soil outside the animal-host body. This notion is supported by the frequent isolation of B. anthracis from soil lacking one or both virulence plasmids. Such strains represent an evolutionary dead end, as they are likely no longer able to successfully infect new hosts. This loss of virulence plasmids is explained most simply by postulating a soil-borne life cycle of the pathogen. To test this hypothesis we investigated possible microevolution at two natural anthrax foci from the 2004 outbreak. If valid, then genotypes of strains isolated from near the surface at these foci should be on a different evolutionary trajectory from those below residing in deeper-laying horizons close to the carcass. Thus, the genetic diversity of B. anthracis isolates was compared conducting Progressive Hierarchical Resolving Assays using Nucleic Acids (PHRANA) and next generation Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS). PHRANA was not discriminatory enough to resolve the fine genetic relationships between the isolates. Conversely, WGS of nine isolates from near-surface and nine from near-carcass revealed five isolate specific SNPs, four of which were found only in different near-surface isolates. In support of our hypothesis, one surface-isolate lacked plasmid pXO1 and also harbored one of the unique SNPs. Taken together, our results suggest a limited soil-borne life cycle of B. anthracis.
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