AUTHOR=McNeilly Celia L. , McMillan David J. 

TITLE=Horizontal gene transfer and recombination in Streptococcus dysgalactiae subsp. equisimilis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=5

YEAR=2014

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2014.00676

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2014.00676

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>Streptococcus dysgalactiae</italic> subsp. <italic>equisimilis</italic> (SDSE) is a human pathogen that colonizes the skin or throat, and causes a range of diseases from relatively benign pharyngitis to potentially fatal invasive diseases. While not as virulent as the close relative <italic>Streptococcus pyogenes</italic> the two share a number of virulence factors and are known to coexist in a human host. Both pre- and post-genomic studies have revealed that horizontal gene transfer (HGT) and recombination occurs between these two organisms and plays a major role in shaping the population structure of SDSE. This review summarizes our current knowledge of HGT and recombination in the evolution of SDSE.</p>