Abstract
Salmonella spp. is one of the most common foodborne pathogens worldwide; therefore, its control is highly relevant for the food industry. Phages of the Felixounavirus genus have the characteristic that one phage can infect a large number of different Salmonella serovars and, thus, are proposed as an alternative to antimicrobials in food production. Here, we describe two new members of the Felixounavirus genus named vB_Si_35FD and vB_Si_DR94, which can infect Salmonella Infantis. These new members were isolated and sequenced, and a subsequent comparative genomic analysis was conducted including 23 publicly available genomes of Felixounaviruses that infect Salmonella. The genomes of vB_Si_35FD and vB_Si_DR94 are 85,818 and 85,730 bp large and contain 129 and 125 coding sequences, respectively. The genomes did not show genes associated with virulence or antimicrobial resistance, which could be useful for candidates to use as biocontrol agents. Comparative genomics revealed that closely related Felixounavirus are found in distinct geographical locations and that this genus has a conserved genomic structure despite its worldwide distribution. Our study revealed a highly conserved structure of the phage genomes, and the two newly described phages could represent promising biocontrol candidates against Salmonella spp. from a genomic viewpoint.
Highlights
IntroductionFurther reports of phages of the Felixounavirus genus have shown their potential for infecting Salmonella of numerous serovars, including descriptions of isolations from several countries such as Russia, the United States, and Chile, which were recovered in samples from different sources: chicken and bovine feces, sewage, and farm soil [16,17,18,19]
Phages vB_Si_35FD and vB_Si_DR094 Represent New Members of the Felixounavirus Genus that Infect a Large Number of Salmonella serovars
An additional genomic region of approximately 15 kb was observed that includes only hypothetical proteins (Figure 1C,D). We found that both genomes did not present genes associated with bacterial virulence or antimicrobial resistance that could be transferred to another hosts, or genes indicative of a possible integration into the bacterial genome
Summary
Further reports of phages of the Felixounavirus genus have shown their potential for infecting Salmonella of numerous serovars, including descriptions of isolations from several countries such as Russia, the United States, and Chile, which were recovered in samples from different sources: chicken and bovine feces, sewage, and farm soil [16,17,18,19]. These reports have shown that Felixounaviruses are strictly lytic, displaying promising potential to be used for the biocontrol of Salmonella spp. We hope that the Antibiotics 2021, 10, 806 background provided by this study will contribute to the robustness of the genetic information on phages of the genus Felixounavirus, which could have significant relevance for the biocontrol of Salmonella
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