Pathogenomics insights for understanding Pasteurella multocida adaptation.

Pasteurella multocida is an important veterinary pathogen able to infect a wide range of animals in a broad spectrum of diseases. P. multocida is a complex microorganism in relation to its genomic flexibility, host adaptation and pathogenesis. Epidemiological analysis based on multilocus sequence typing, serotyping, genotyping, association with virulence genes and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), enables assessment of intraspecies diversity, phylogenetic and strain-specific relationships associated with host predilection or disease. A high number of sequenced genomes provides us a more accurate genomic and epidemiological interpretation to determine whether certain lineages can infect a host or produce disease. Comparative genomic analysis and pan-genomic approaches have revealed a flexible genome for hosting mobile genetic elements (MGEs) and therefore significant variation in gene content. Moreover, it was possible to find lineage-specific MGEs from the same niche, showing acquisition probably due to an evolutionary convergence event or to a genetic group with infective capacity. Furthermore, diversification selection analysis exhibits proteins exposed on the surface subject to selection pressures with an interstrain heterogeneity related to their ability to adapt. This article is the first review describing the genomic relationship to elucidate the diversity and evolution of P. multocida.

[Pasteurella multocida bacteremic meningitis]. / Meningitis bacteriémica por Pasteurella multocida.

Human infections by Pasteurella multocida are usually associated with bites or scratches from dogs and cats. Many of them are accompanied by other oropharyngeal microorganisms of these animals. We herein present a case of bacteremic meningitis by P. multocida in an 86-year-old woman who was living with seven cats. Even though no skin or soft tissue infection was recorded, it is possible that a mild infection had gone undetected and a subsequent bacteremia had impacted on the meninges, or that meningitis could have occurred after nasopharyngeal colonization (not demonstrated). The isolates obtained from blood cultures and cerebrospinal fluid were identified as P. multocida by API 20NE, API 20E, and Vitek 1. In agreement with findings in the literature, this strain was susceptible to penicillin, cefotaxime, levofloxacin and tetracyclines.