Poster Session: Biology and Disease Management - Bacteriology
3-P
Complete genome of the select agent Rathayibacter toxicus isolate SA03-04 from South Australia.
A. MOHAMMAD (1), G. Y. Busot (1), R. Mann (2), B. Rodoni (2), S. Liu (1), J. P. Stack (1)
(1) Department of Plant Pathology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, U.S.A.; (2) Department of Primary Industries, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Australia
The Select Agent Rathayibacter toxicus is a gram-positive, toxin-producing bacterium that causes morbidity and mortality in livestock that consume contaminated annual ryegrass (Annual Ryegrass Toxicity, ARGT). Livestock deaths occur annually in Australia due to ARGT raising concerns about the potential global spread of R. toxicus in ryegrass hay and seed. A genetic analysis identified three distinct populations of R. toxicus in Australia, including one not previously reported. Whole-genome sequencing was undertaken to develop a better understanding of this new population collected in South Australia in March 2014. A complete genome of R. toxicus isolate SA03-04 (population-A) was obtained through de novo assembly (HGAP3 assembly pipeline: Hierarchical Genome Assembly Process) using 101X depth of PacBio sequences. The R. toxicus genome is a single chromosome 2.369 Mb in size with 61.4% GC content. The genome annotation identified 2290 coding sequences (CDS) including, 45 tRNA CDS and 6 rRNA CDS (LSU rRNA, SSU rRNA and 5S rRNA were 3117-, 1486- and 121-bp in length, respectively). Genome analyses will provide a better understanding of the genetic constitution and evolutionary history of this high consequence bacterium. Signature genomic regions are being identified to develop effective diagnostic tools for plant biosecurity applications.