Species-wide whole genome sequencing reveals historical global spread and recent local persistence in Shigella flexneri

Thomas R. Connor*, Clare R. Barker, Kate S. Baker, Francois Xavier Weill, Kaisar Ali Talukder, Anthony M. Smith, Stephen Baker, Malika Gouali, Duy Pham Thanh, Ishrat Jahan Azmi, Wanderley Dias da Silveira, Torsten Semmler, Lothar H. Wieler, Claire Jenkins, Alejandro Cravioto, Shah M. Faruque, Julian Parkhill, Dong Wook Kim, Karen H. Keddy, Nicholas R. Thomson

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

90 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Shigella flexneri is the most common cause of bacterial dysentery in low-income countries. Despite this, S. flexneri remains largely unexplored from a genomic standpoint and is still described using a vocabulary based on serotyping reactions developed over half-a-century ago. Here we combine whole genome sequencing with geographical and temporal data to examine the natural history of the species. Our analysis subdivides S. flexneri into seven phylogenetic groups (PGs); each containing twoor- more serotypes and characterised by distinct virulence gene complement and geographic range. Within the S. flexneri PGs we identify geographically restricted sub-lineages that appear to have persistently colonised regions for many decades to over 100 years. Although we found abundant evidence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) determinant acquisition, our dataset shows no evidence of subsequent intercontinental spread of antimicrobial resistant strains. The pattern of colonisation and AMR gene acquisition suggest that S. flexneri has a distinct life-cycle involving local persistence.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere07335
JournaleLife
Volume4
Issue numberAUGUST2015
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 4 Aug 2015

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© Connor et al.

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