Microarray Analyses of Xylella fastidiosa Provide Evidence of Coordinated Transcription Control of Laterally Transferred Elements
- Luiz R. Nunes1,6,
- Yoko B. Rosato2,
- Nair H. Muto1,
- Giane M. Yanai1,
- Vivian S. da Silva1,
- Daniela B. Leite1,
- Edmilson R. Gonçalves2,
- Alessandra A. de Souza3,4,
- Helvécio D. Coletta-Filho3,
- Marcos A. Machado3,
- Silvio A. Lopes5, and
- Regina Costa de Oliveira1,6
- 1Núcleo Integrado de Biotecnologia, Universidade de Mogi das Cruzes, Mogi das Cruzes, SP 08780-911, Brazil; 2Centro de Biologia Molecular e Engenharia Genética, Universidade de Campinas, Caixa Postal 6010, Campinas, SP, Brazil; 3Centro APTA de Citros Sylvio Moreira, Instituto Agronômico de Campinas, Caixa Postal 04, Cordeirópolis, SP 13490, 970, Brazil; 4Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária, EMBRAPA; 5Unidade de Biotecnologia, Universidade de Ribeirão Preto, Ribeirão Preto, SP 14096-380, Brazil
Abstract
Genetically distinct strains of the plant bacterium Xylella fastidiosa (Xf) are responsible for a variety of plant diseases, accounting for severe economic damage throughout the world. Using as a reference the genome of Xf 9a5c strain, associated with citrus variegated chlorosis (CVC), we developed a microarray-based comparison involving 12 Xf isolates, providing a thorough assessment of the variation in genomic composition across the group. Our results demonstrate that Xf displays one of the largest flexible gene pools characterized to date, with several horizontally acquired elements, such as prophages, plasmids, and genomic islands (GIs), which contribute up to 18% of the final genome. Transcriptome analysis of bacteria grown under different conditions shows that most of these elements are transcriptionally active, and their expression can be influenced in a coordinated manner by environmental stimuli. Finally, evaluation of the genetic composition of these laterally transferred elements identified differences that may help to explain the adaptability of Xf strains to infect such a wide range of plant species.
[Supplemental material is available online at www.genome.org.]
Footnotes
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↵6 Corresponding authors.
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E-MAIL Lnunes{at}umc.br; FAX 55-11-4798-7104.
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E-MAIL reginaco{at}umc.br; FAX 55-11-4798-7106.
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Article and publication are at http://www.genome.org/cgi/doi/10.1101/gr.930803.
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- Received October 24, 2002.
- Accepted January 29, 2003.
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press
