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Split Green Fluorescent Protein System to Visualize Effectors Delivered from Bacteria During Infection
Published on: May 24, 2018
Describing commonalities in microbial effector delivery using the Gene Ontology
Marcus C Chibucos1, Tsai-Tien Tseng, João C Setubal
1Virginia Bioinformatics Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.
Trends in Microbiology
|July 7, 2009
Summary
Microbes deliver effector molecules to hosts using diverse mechanisms. Gene Ontology (GO) aids comparative genomics by revealing conserved effector delivery strategies across species.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Genomics
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Symbiotic microbes, both mutualistic and pathogenic, deliver effector molecules into host cells to aid colonization.
- Diverse organisms have evolved analogous structures and processes for effector delivery, including syringe-like injection and specialized intercellular structures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce the Gene Ontology (GO) as a tool for comparative genomics.
- To summarize and compare effector delivery mechanisms across various taxa.
- To demonstrate how GO annotations can uncover evolutionary similarities in effector delivery.
Main Methods:
- Literature review and comparison of effector delivery mechanisms in bacteria, nematodes, oomycetes, protozoans, and fungi.
- Introduction to the Gene Ontology (GO) and its application in functional annotation.
- Analysis of GO annotations to identify conserved patterns in effector delivery.
Main Results:
- Effector delivery mechanisms, despite variations, share underlying functional similarities.
- GO facilitates the identification of these conserved strategies across evolutionarily distant organisms.
- Comparative analysis using GO highlights conserved host-targeting signals and injection systems.
Conclusions:
- Gene Ontology provides a standardized framework for understanding conserved microbial effector delivery mechanisms.
- Comparative genomics using GO can reveal hidden evolutionary relationships in host-microbe interactions.
- Standardized annotation with GO enhances our ability to study the evolution of colonization strategies.
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