Deletion in mce4 gene exacerbates virulence of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis.

COLOMBATTI OLIVIERI MA; MOYANO RD; NAGEL A; ROMANO MI; ALONSO, MARÍA NATALIA

Dublin

Congreso; 15th International Association for Paratuberculosis Colloquium 2022 Conference; 2022

Association for Paratuberculosis

Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the causative agent of Paratuberculosis in ruminants, a chronic granulomatous enteritis that is transmitted via the fecal-oral route and causes important economic losses. It is crucial to deepen the study of virulence genes involved in the pathogenesis of MAP.The mce4 is an operon that may facilitate the uptake and utilization of cholesterol from host cells during infection, a function that is known to be essential for successful cellular invasion and persistence in the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex.The deletion of the lprG-p55 operon produced the attenuation of the Map 6611 strain in bovine macrophages and in BALB-c mice, while the deletion of the mce4 operon did not show an attenuated profile. The Δmce4 mutant had a higher percentage of survival than 6611-WT in bovine macrophages, but similar spleen CFU counts in the mice model. Although the Δmce4 mutant produced significant lesions compared to the 6611-WT strain in BALB-c. Further studies will be necessary to elucidate the role of this operon in the pathogenesis of MAP.