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Principal Investigator: Dr. Michael Stanhope
Contact Information: E-mail: mjs297@cornell.edu - Phone: 607-253-3857
Sponsor: USDA
Grant Number: 2006-35204-17422
Title: Clonality, Genetic Diversity and Molecular Adaptation of Virulence Factors in Bovine Mastitis and Equine Streptococcal Pathogens
Annual Direct Cost: $88,784
Project Period: 09/01/06-08/31/09
DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This project addresses the critical need for an improved understanding of virulence factors in bovine mastitis (Streptococcus uberis and S. agalactiae) and equine streptococcal pathogens (S. equi subsp. equi and S. equi subsp. zooepidemicus), while simultaneously providing much needed molecular epidemiology information for the two equine pathogens. Our approach is a comparative evolutionary biology one, that will take advantage of the fact these four taxa are relatively closely related and that there are newly released genomic sequences for all the relevant species. The research employs modern molecular epidemiology principles and techniques to provide the first thorough picture of genetic diversity (number of major clones, their relative abundance, and their host and geographic distribution) for S. equi subsp. equi and S. equi subsp. zooepidemicus. Using modern molecular selection and evolutionary bioinformatics approaches we will assess which genes, classes of genes and virulence factors are under adaptive selection pressure (and therefore of greatest putative functional significance), within each of these four taxa, as well as within bovine adapted ecotypes of S. agalactiae and S. uberis. We will also employ microarrays to assess genomic gene content differences across major clones, clonal complexes, and ecotypes within each species. It is our intention that the fundamental data on clonality, genetic diversity, and adaptive molecular evolution that our study will generate, will open up novel therapeutic strategies for all these organisms.
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