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Category: Applied and Industrial Microbiology; Food Microbiology
Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Page 1 of 2
< Previous page | Next page > /docserver/preview/fulltext/10.1128/9781555816902/9781555814571_Chap06-1.gif /docserver/preview/fulltext/10.1128/9781555816902/9781555814571_Chap06-2.gifAbstract:
This chapter talks about Vibrio parahaemolyticus that can cause fatal septicemia in immune-compromised hosts. The Kanagawa phenomenon (KP) has long been recognized as an effective marker for discriminating pathogenic from nonpathogenic V. parahaemolyticus strains and is used extensively as a clinical indicator for the virulence of this bacterium. Thermostable direct hemolysin (TDH) is considered an important virulence factor for V. parahaemolyticus. Genes classified in transcriptional regulation have specific roles in response to environmental changes. The most notable finding of the genome sequencing of V. parahaemolyticus was the presence in the genome of two sets of genes for the type III secretion system (T3SS). T3SS2 may also be useful for novel preventive and therapeutic methods, for example, as a target for vaccines or drugs against V. parahaemolyticus infections. The novel preventive and therapeutic methods discussed here are highly selective for this pathogen and may therefore contribute to therapies that are distinct from conventional treatments based on the administration of antibiotics. Studies on V. parahaemolyticus have mainly focused on the role of virulence factors TDH and thermostable direct related hemolysin (TRH), but genome sequencing of this bacterium has shed light on novel aspects of this organism. A notable finding in this context is the discovery of functional T3SS genes in the genome of V. parahaemolyticus, which are not found in the genomes of cholera-toxin-producing V. cholerae and V. parahaemolyticus.
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Schematic view of bacterial T3SS apparatus. Effector proteins (black and shaded circles) are translocated directly into the cytosol of target eukaryotic cells.
Schematic representation of the hypothetical evolutionary acquisition of a T3SS-related gene cluster in V. parahaemolyticus and V. cholerae. The shaded ellipses show the T3SS-related gene clusters. Bold lines represent the evolutionary process. Circles indicate the strains of V. parahaemolyticus and V. cholerae. Shaded circles indicate that the strains possess T3SSalpha or T3SSbeta. The broken lines indicate that the T3SS-related gene clusters or cholera toxin has been acquired by horizontal gene transfer while the organisms were evolving. Cited from reference 32 .