Abstract
Sporotrichosis is a polymorphic disease caused by a complex of thermodimorphic fungi including S. brasiliensis, S. schenckii sensu stricto (s. str.), S. globosa and S. luriei. Humans and animals can acquire the disease through traumatic inoculation of propagules into the subcutaneous tissue. Despite the importance of sporotrichosis as a disease that can take epidemic proportions there are just a few studies dealing with genetic polymorphisms and genomic architecture of these pathogens. The main objective of this study was to investigate chromosomal polymorphisms and genomic organization among different isolates in the S. schenckii complex. We used pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) to separate chromosomal fragments of isolated DNA, followed by probe hybridization. Nine loci (β-tubulin, calmodulin, catalase, chitin synthase 1, Internal Transcribed Spacer, Pho85 cyclin-dependent kinase, protein kinase C Ss-2, G protein α subunit and topoisomerase II) were mapped onto chromosomal bands of Brazilian isolates of S. schenckii s. str. and S. brasiliensis. Our results revealed the presence of intra and interspecies polymorphisms in chromosome number and size. The gene hybridization analysis showed that closely related species in phylogenetic analysis had similar genetic organizations, mostly due to identification of synteny groups in chromosomal bands of similar sizes. Our results bring new insights into the genetic diversity and genome organization among pathogenic species in the Sporothrix schenckii complex.
Highlights
Sporotrichosis is a chronic, granulomatous, subcutaneous disease caused by several thermodimorphic pathogenic species in the Sporothrix schenckii complex [1]
Clades I–III and VI (S. brasiliensis, S. schenckii s. str., S. globosa and S. luriei, respectively) are related to human and animal infections, while S. pallida (Clade V), S. mexicana (Clade IV) and S. brunneoviolacea are well described as soil and decaying wood inhabiting (Fig. 1)
Due to the high prevalence of S. brasiliensis and S. schenckii s. str. in Brazil [3,6,9], we evaluated the differences in genome structures among eight S. schenckii s. str. isolates and two S. brasiliensis isolates collected in distinct regions of Brazil
Summary
Sporotrichosis is a chronic, granulomatous, subcutaneous disease caused by several thermodimorphic pathogenic species in the Sporothrix schenckii complex [1]. It is widely reported that the infection occurs through traumatic inoculation of fungal propagules into the skin by contaminated material, such as soil, thorns or splinters. Sporotrichosis mainly affects humans and animals [2,3,4]. The zoonotic potential, as exemplified by animal scratches and bites, from cats, are the most common modes of transmission to humans in hyperendemic areas in Brazil [5,6]. Human infections are associated with transmission from wild animals; for example, injuries caused by armadillos when hunting the animal [7]. Sporotrichosis has a worldwide distribution with a high incidence in temperate and tropical regions including Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Uruguay), South Africa, India, and Japan [8]
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