Applied and Environmental Microbiology (2008) 74, 259-264

Liesbeth M. Schmidt, Laurence Mouton, Guang Nong, Dieter Ebert and James F. Preston (2008)
Genetic and immunological comparison of the cladoceran parasite Pasteuria ramosa with the nematode parasite Pasteuria penetrans
Applied and Environmental Microbiology 74 (1), 259-264
Abstract: Pasteuria penetrans, an obligate endospore-forming parasite of Meloidogyne spp. (root knot nematodes), has been identified as a promising agent for biocontrol of these destructive agricultural crop pests. Pasteuria ramosa, an obligate parasite of water fleas (Daphnia spp.), has been shown to modulate cladoceran populations in natural ecosystems. Selected sporulation genes and an epitope associated with the spore envelope of these related species were compared. The sigE and spoIIAA/spoIIAB genes differentiate the two species to a greater extent than 16S rRNA and may serve as probes to differentiate the species. Single-nucleotide variations were observed in several conserved genes of five distinct populations of P. ramosa, and while most of these variations are silent single-nucleotide polymorphisms, a few result in conservative amino acid substitutions. A monoclonal antibody directed against an adhesin epitope present on P. penetrans P20 endospores, previously determined to be specific for Pasteuria spp. associated with several phytopathogenic nematodes, also detects an epitope associated with P. ramosa endospores. Immunoblotting provided patterns that differentiate P. ramosa from other Pasteuria spp. This monoclonal antibody thus provides a probe with which to detect and discriminate endospores of different Pasteuria spp. The presence of a shared adhesin epitope in two species with such ecologically distant hosts suggests that there is an ancient and ecologically significant recognition process in these endospore-forming bacilli that contributes to the virulence of both species in their respective hosts.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): James F. Preston

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
molecular biology - genes
identification/taxonomy

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
Pasteuria penetrans (antagonist)