Lysogenic Streptococcus suis isolate SS2-4 containing prophage SMP showed increased mortality in zebra fish compared to the wild-type isolate.

Streptococcus suis (S. suis) infection is considered to be a major problem in the swine industry worldwide. Based on the capsular type, 33 serotypes of S. suis have been described, with serotype 2 (SS2) being the most frequently isolated from diseased piglets. Little is known, however, about the pat...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Fang Tang, Wei Zhang, Chengping Lu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2013-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3542266?pdf=render
Description
Summary:Streptococcus suis (S. suis) infection is considered to be a major problem in the swine industry worldwide. Based on the capsular type, 33 serotypes of S. suis have been described, with serotype 2 (SS2) being the most frequently isolated from diseased piglets. Little is known, however, about the pathogenesis and virulence factors of S. suis. Research on bacteriophages highlights a new area in S. suis research. A S. suis serotype 2 bacteriophage, designated SMP, has been previously isolated in our laboratory. Here, we selected a lysogenic isolate in which the SMP phage was integrated into the chromosome of strain SS2-4. Compared to the wild-type isolate, the lysogenic strain showed increased mortality in zebra fish. Moreover the sensitivity of the lysogenic strain to lysozyme was seven times higher than that of the wild-type.
ISSN:1932-6203