Abstract
Ralstonia solanacearum, a soil-borne plant pathogen, encompasses a large number of strains known as R. solanacearum species complex (RSSC). Although it has been suggested that mobile genetic elements (MGEs) may play an important role in the RSSC genome, the evolutionary impact of these elements remains unknown. Here, we identified and analysed Integrative and Conjugative Elements (ICEs) and Genomic Islands (GIs) in the 121 genomes published for Ralstonia spp., including RSSC strains and three other non-plant pathogenic Ralstonia spp. Our results provided a dataset of 12 ICEs and 31 GIs distributed throughout Ralstonia spp. Four novel ICEs in RSSC were found. Some of these elements cover 5% of the host genome and carry accessory genes with a potential impact on the fitness and pathogenicity of RSSC. In addition, phylogenetic analysis revealed that these MGEs clustered to the same species, but there is evidence of strains from different countries that host the same element. Our results provide novel insight into the RSSC adaptation, opening new paths to a better understanding of how these elements affect this soil-borne plant pathogen.
Highlights
Ralstonia solanacearum, a soil-borne plant pathogen, encompasses a large number of strains known as R. solanacearum species complex (RSSC)
The majority of Integrative and Conjugative Elements (ICEs) and Genomic Islands (GIs) are preferentially associated with R. pseudosolanacearum strains
Ralstonia solanacearum is a useful model for exploring the evolution patterns in closely connected strains due to the formation of emerging ecotypes adapting to local environmental c onditions[20,21]
Summary
A soil-borne plant pathogen, encompasses a large number of strains known as R. solanacearum species complex (RSSC). GIs harbour components of MGEs that may have been implicated in mobilizing DNA10 These regions often carry genes conferring a selective advantage to the host bacterium, which, depending on their gene functions, may be referred to as pathogenicity, symbiosis, metabolic, fitness, or resistance islands[9,11]. The acquisition of ICEs and GIs may be attributed to a great source of genetic variation and ecological adaptation to certain plant pathogens[13,14] How these elements impact the fitness and pathogenicity of RSSC strains remains unclear. To close this knowledge gap, we conducted genome mining and comparative genomic analysis based on the repertoire of ICEs and GIs in the 121 Ralstonia spp. genomes
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