Bacteriophages and pathogenicity: more than just providing a toxin?

Colin R. Tinsley (1) , Emmanuelle Bille (2) , Xavier Nassif (2)

1 MGM - Microbiologie et Génétique Moléculaire
2 UMR_S 570 - Pathogénie des infections systémiques

An increasing number of pathogenicity factors are discovered to be carried by bacteriophages. This review considers the bacteriophage-bacterium interaction and its relation to disease processes. We discuss the search for new bacteriophage-associated pathogenicity factors with emphasis on recent advances brought by the use of genomic sequence data and the techniques of genomic epidemiology.

Keywords: Neisseria meningitidis; bacteriophage; genetics; evolution; pathogenesis

Domains: Virology; Bacteriology; Symbiosis; Infectious diseases

Colin R. Tinsley, Emmanuelle Bille, Xavier Nassif. Bacteriophages and pathogenicity: more than just providing a toxin?. Microbes and Infection, 2006, 8 (5), p. 365-1371. ⟨10.1016/j.micinf.2005.12.013⟩. ⟨hal-03665237⟩