Query: NC_010999:880878 Lactobacillus casei, complete genome
Lineage: Lactobacillus casei; Lactobacillus; Lactobacillaceae; Lactobacillales; Firmicutes; Bacteria
General Information: Lactobacillus casei BL23 is a probiotic strain that was originally isolated from cheese. Starter culture for milk fermentation and flavor development of cheese. They are commonly found in the oral, vaginal, and intestinal regions of many animals. They are important industrial microbes that contribute to the production of cheese, yogurt, fermented milks, and other products, all stemming from the production of lactic acid, which inhibits the growth of other organisms as well as lowering the pH of the food product. Industrial production requires the use of starter cultures, which are carefully created, cultivated, and maintained, which produce specific end products during fermentation that impart flavor to the final product, as well as contributing important metabolic reactions, such as the breakdown of milk proteins during cheese production. The end product of fermentation, lactic acid, is also being used as a starter molecule for complex organic molecule syntheses.
Subject: NC_002973:72328 Listeria monocytogenes str. 4b F2365, complete genome
Lineage: Listeria monocytogenes; Listeria; Listeriaceae; Bacillales; Firmicutes; Bacteria
General Information: This strain was isolated in 1985 in California, USA, during an outbreak of listeriosis among patients with AIDS. The strain is of serotype 4b and was isolated from a cheese product that caused the outbreak. This organism, which causes listeriosis, is one of the leading causes of death from food-borne pathogens especially in pregnant women, newborns, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals. It is found in environments such as decaying vegetable matter, sewage, water, and soil, and it can survive extremes of both temperatures (1-45 degrees C) and salt concentration marking it as an extremely dangerous food-born pathogen, especially on food that is not reheated. This organism is enteroinvasive, and utilizes an actin-based motility system by using a surface protein, ActA, that promotes actin polymerization, to spread intercellularly using the polymerized cytoskeletal protein as a "motor". There are 13 serovars associated with Listeria monocytogenes, and the serovar 4b strains are more commonly associated with invasive disease.