Low genomic diversity of Legionella pneumophila within clinical specimens

David, Sophia; Mentasti, M.; Parkhill, Julian; Chalker, Victoria J.

doi:10.1016/j.cmi.2018.03.004

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…However, the inhaled dose compared to the deposited dose is unknown, as is the composition of the Legionella population inside human lungs. One study on ten patients found no to very low within-host diversity [71], an hypothesis confirmed by more studies [72,73]. Other studies, however, found the opposite [38,74], and it is thus likely that within-host diversity depends on the diversity of L. pneumophila in environmental sources, variations in infectious dose, and the duration of infection prior to sampling [71].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…One study on ten patients found no to very low within-host diversity [71], an hypothesis confirmed by more studies [72, 73]. Other studies, however, found the opposite [38, 74], and it is thus likely that within-host diversity depends on the diversity of L. pneumophila in environmental sources, variations in infectious dose, and the duration of infection prior to sampling [71]. While antibiotic resistance does not appear to be a current general concern in the environment, antibiotic resistance to fluoroquinolones has been shown to occur within patients [75].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rapid, in-patient adaptations of Legionella pneumophila to the human host

Leenheer

Moreno

Murray

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Legionella pneumophila are host-adapted bacteria that infect and reproduce primarily in amoeboid protists. Using similar infection mechanisms, they infect human macrophages, and cause Legionnaires' disease, an atypical pneumonia, and the milder Pontiac fever. We hypothesized that, despite these similarities, the hosts are different enough so that there exist high-selective value mutations that would dramatically increase the fitness of Legionella inside the human host. By comparing a large number of isolates from independent infections, we identified two genes, mutated in three unrelated patients, despite the short duration of the incubation period (2-14 days). One is a gene coding for an outer membrane protein (OMP) belonging to the OmpP1/FadL family. The clinical strain, carrying the mutated OMP homolog, grows faster in macrophages than the wild type strain, and thus appears to be better adapted to the human host. The other is a gene coding for a protein involved in cyclic-di-GMP regulation, which in turn modulates flagellar activity. As human-to-human transmission is very rare, fixation of these mutations into the population and spread into the environment is unlikely. Therefore, convergent evolution - here mutations in the same genes observed in independent human infections - could point to adaptations to the accidental human host. These results suggest that despite its ability to infect, replicate, and disperse from amoebae, L. pneumophila is not well adapted to the human host.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid, in-patient adaptations of Legionella pneumophila to the human host

Leenheer

Moreno

Murray

et al. 2022

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Legionnaires’ disease in Switzerland: rationale and study protocol of a prospective national case–control and molecular source attribution study (SwissLEGIO)

et al. 2023

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Switzerland has one of the highest annual Legionnaires’ disease (LD) notification rates in Europe (7.8 cases/100,000 population in 2021). The main sources of infection and the cause for this high rate remain largely unknown. This hampers the implementation of targeted Legionella spp. control efforts. The SwissLEGIO national case–control and molecular source attribution study investigates risk factors and infection sources for community-acquired LD in Switzerland. Over the duration of one year, the study is recruiting 205 newly diagnosed LD patients through a network of 20 university and cantonal hospitals. Healthy controls matched for age, sex, and residence at district level are recruited from the general population. Risk factors for LD are assessed in questionnaire-based interviews. Clinical and environmental Legionella spp. isolates are compared using whole genome sequencing (WGS). Direct comparison of sero- and sequence types (ST), core genome multilocus sequencing types (cgMLST), and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) between clinical and environmental isolates are used to investigate the infection sources and the prevalence and virulence of different Legionella spp. strains detected across Switzerland. The SwissLEGIO study innovates in combining case–control and molecular typing approaches for source attribution on a national level outside an outbreak setting. The study provides a unique platform for national Legionellosis and Legionella research and is conducted in an inter- and transdisciplinary, co-production approach involving various national governmental and national research stakeholders.

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Future trends in decontamination in hospitals and healthcare

Walker¹

2020

Decontamination in Hospitals and Healthcare

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Low genomic diversity of Legionella pneumophila within clinical specimens

Cited by 6 publications

References 18 publications

Rapid, in-patient adaptations of Legionella pneumophila to the human host

Rapid, in-patient adaptations of Legionella pneumophila to the human host

Legionnaires’ disease in Switzerland: rationale and study protocol of a prospective national case–control and molecular source attribution study (SwissLEGIO)

Future trends in decontamination in hospitals and healthcare

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