Query: NC_010263:278463 Rickettsia rickettsii str. Iowa, complete genome
Lineage: Rickettsia rickettsii; Rickettsia; Rickettsiaceae; Rickettsiales; Proteobacteria; Bacteria
General Information: Causative agent for Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. This organism was first identified by Dr. Howard Rickets as the causative agent of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, which was originally named for its geographic distribution at the time, it is now known to be widespread throughout the North American continent. This bacterium is an obligate intracellular pathogen that infects primarily the vascular endothelium, and occasionally smooth muscle tissue. It is passed to the human host from a tick bite, and the tick acts as both a natural reservoir and a vector for disease transmission. Once the organism is endocytosed by the host cell, it quickly escapes the phagozome, and replicates intracellularly, causing cell death and tissue damage. The disease is characterized by a spotted rash and has a high mortality rate if left untreated.
Subject: NC_009648:3192483 Klebsiella pneumoniae subsp. pneumoniae MGH 78578, complete genome
Lineage: Klebsiella pneumoniae; Klebsiella; Enterobacteriaceae; Enterobacteriales; Proteobacteria; Bacteria
General Information: This strain was isolated from a patient in 1994. Opportunistic pathogen that causes multiple hospital-acquired infections. This organism is the most medically important organism within the genus Klebsiella. It is an environmental organism found in water, soil, and on the surface of plants. Several strains have been isolated from plant tissues and are nitrogen-fixing endophytes that may be a source of nitrogen for the plant. Other strains can become opportunistic pathogens which infect humans, and typically causes hospital-acquired infections in immunocompromised patients. Major sites of infection include the lungs, where it causes a type of pneumonia, and urinary tract infections. Klebsiella can also enter the bloodstream (bacterimia) and cause sepsis. The pathogen can also infect animals and cause inflammation of the uterus in horses as well as more generalized infections in other mammals. This organism expresses numerous pathogenicity factors, including multiple adhesins, capsular polysaccharide, siderophores, and lipopolysaccharide for the evasion of host defenses. The multiple antibiotic resistance genes carried on the chromosome inhibit efforts to clear the organism from infected patients via antibiotic use.