Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism of PCR products (PCR-RFLP) are extensively used molecular biology techniques. An exercise for the design and simulation of PCR and PCR-RFLP experiments will be a useful educational tool.

The use of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) for bacterial characterisation has increased substantially in the last decade. Its high throughput and decreasing cost have led to significant changes in outbreak investigations and surveillance of a wide variety of microbial pathogens. Despite the innumerable advantages of WGS, several drawbacks concerning data analysis and management, as well as a general lack of standardisation, hinder its integration in routine use. In this work, a bioinformatics workflow for (Illumina) WGS data is presented for bacterial characterisation including genome annotation, species identification, serotype prediction, antimicrobial resistance prediction, virulence-related genes and plasmid replicon detection, core-genome-based or single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)-based phylogenetic clustering and sequence typing. Workflow was tested using a collection of 22 in-house sequences of Salmonella enterica isolates belonging to a local outbreak, coupled with a collection of 182 Salmonella genomes publicly available. No errors were reported during the execution period, and all genomes were analysed. The bioinformatics workflow can be tailored to other pathogens of interest and is freely available for academic and non-profit use as an uploadable file to the Galaxy platform.

After Salmonella Enteritidis and S. Typhimurium, S. 4,[5],12:i:- is the most reported serovar in human clinical cases. During the past 20 years, many tools have been used for its typing and second-phase flagellar deletion characterization. Currently, whole genome sequencing (WGS) and different bioinformatic programs have shown the potential to be more accurate than earlier tools. To assess this potential, we analyzed by WGS and in silico typing a selection of 42 isolates of S. 4,[5],12:i:- and S. Typhimurium with different in vitro characteristics. Comparative analysis showed that SeqSero2 does not differentiate fljB-positive S. 4,[5],12:i:- strains from those of serovar Typhimurium. Our results proved that the strains selected for this work were non-clonal S. 4,[5],12:i:- strains circulating in Spain. Using WGS data, we identified 13 different deletion types of the second-phase flagellar genomic region. Most of the deletions were generated by IS26 insertions, showing orientation-dependent conserved deletion ends. In addition, we detected S. 4,[5],12:i:- strains of the American clonal line that would give rise to the Southern European clone in Spain. Our results suggest that new S. 4,[5],12:i:- strains are continuously emerging from different S. Typhimurium strains via different genetic events, at least in swine products.

The pathogenesis of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (S. Typhi), the cause of typhoid fever in humans, is mainly attributed to the acquisition of horizontally acquired DNA elements. Salmonella pathogenicity islands (SPIs) are indubitably the most important form of horizontally acquired DNA with respect to pathogenesis of this bacterium. The insertion or deletion of any of these transferrable SPIs may have impact on the virulence potential of S. Typhi. In this study, the virulence potential and genetic relatedness of 35 S. Typhi isolates, collected from 2004 to 2013 was determined by identification of SPI and non-SPI virulence factors through a combination of techniques including virulotyping, Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS), and Variable Number of Tandem Repeats (VNTR) profiling. In order to determine the virulence potential of local S. Typhi isolates, 56 virulence related genes were studied by PCR. These genes are located in the core as well as accessory genome (SPIs and plasmid). Major variations among studied virulence determinants were found in case of SPI-7 and SPI-10 associated genes. On the basis of presence of virulence related genes, the studied S. Typhi isolates from Pakistan were clustered into two virulotypes Vi-positive and Vi-negative. Interestingly, SPI-7 and SPI-10 were collectively absent or present in Vi-negative and Vi-positive strains, respectively. Two Vi-negative and 11 Vi-positive S. Typhi strains were also analyzed by whole genome sequencing (WGS) and their results supported the PCR results. Genetic diversity was tested by VNTR-based molecular typing. All 35 isolates were clustered into five groups. Overall, all Vi-negative isolates were placed in a single group (T5) whereas Vi-positive isolates were grouped into four types. Vi-negative and Vi-positive isolates were mutually exclusive. This is the first report on the comparative distribution of SPI and non-SPI related virulence genes in Vi-negative and Vi-positive S. Typhi isolates with an important finding that SPI-10 is absent in all Vi-negative isolates. The distribution of virulence factors in S. Typhi can vary in isolates from different geographical regions and can have significant effect on the disease control. In this study, we have checked the distribution of 56 reported virulence associated factors in 35 local isolates of S. Typhi to identify any variations that can help in designing effective control strategies for typhoid. We have identified four naturally occurring variants which are simultaneously lacking SPI-7 and SPI-10, two adjacently located pathogenicity islands on S. Typhi chromosome. These isolates are not producing Vi capsular antigen hence the Vi based vaccines will not be effective against them. These findings highlight the need to develop typhoid vaccines specifically effective in Pakistan.

Extensive pig systems are gaining importance as quality production systems and as the standard for sustainable rural development and animal welfare. However, the effects of natural foods on Salmonella epidemiology remain unknown. Herein, we assessed the presence of Salmonella and the composition of the gut microbiota in pigs from both Salmonella-free and high Salmonella prevalence farms. In addition, risk factors associated with the presence of Salmonella were investigated. The pathogen was found in 32.2% of animals and 83.3% of farms, showing large differences in prevalence between farms. Most isolates were serovars Typhimurium monophasic (79.3%) and Bovismorbificans (10.3%), and exhibited a multi-drug resistance profile (58.6%). Risk factor analysis identified feed composition, type/variety of vegetation available, and silos’ cleaning/disinfection as the main factors associated with Salmonella prevalence. Clear differences in the intestinal microbiota were found between Salmonella-positive and Salmonella-negative populations, showing the former with increasing Proteobacteria and decreasing Bacteroides populations. Butyrate and propionate producers including Clostridium, Turicibacter, Bacteroidaceae_uc, and Lactobacillus were more abundant in the Salmonella-negative group, whereas acetate producers like Sporobacter, Escherichia or Enterobacter were more abundant in the Salmonella-positive group. Overall, our results suggest that the presence of Salmonella in free-range pigs is directly related to the natural vegetation accessible, determining the composition of the intestinal microbiota.