Science · 1998 · 204 citations · 17 references
Life SciencesMicrobiologyMolecular BiologyHost-pathogen InteractionsMicrobial GeneticsMicrobial PathogenesisBacterial PathogenesisBacterial Virulence FactorsMicrobial Virulence FactorsPathogen Virulence FactorsPathogenesis Of Infectious DiseaseVirulence Gene RegulationMycobacterium Tuberculosis InfectionMycobacterium Tuberculosis PathogenesisVirulence Factor ExpressionVirulence Factor RegulationVirulence Gene Expression
The virulence of the mycobacteria that cause tuberculosis depends on their ability to multiply in mammalian hosts. Disruption of the bacterial erp gene, which encodes the exported repetitive protein, impaired multiplication of M. tuberculosis and M. bovis Bacille Calmette-Guérin in cultured macrophages and mice. Reintroduction of erp into the mutants restored their ability to multiply. These results indicate that erp contributes to the virulence of M. tuberculosis.
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