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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, November 2004, p. 6488-6494, Vol. 70, No. 11
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.11.6488-6494.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Identification of a Third msa Gene in Renibacterium salmoninarum and the Associated Virulence Phenotype

Linda D. Rhodes,* Alison M. Coady,{dagger} and Rebecca K. Deinhard{ddagger}

Northwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce, Seattle, Washington

Received 5 March 2004/ Accepted 12 July 2004

Renibacterium salmoninarum, a gram-positive diplococcobacillus, causes bacterial kidney disease, a condition that can result in extensive morbidity and mortality among stocks of fish. An immunodominant extracellular protein, called major soluble antigen (MSA), is encoded by two identical genes, msa1 and msa2. We found evidence for a third msa gene, msa3, which appears to be a duplication of msa1. Unlike msa1 and msa2, msa3 is not present in all isolates of R. salmoninarum. The presence of the msa3 locus does not affect total MSA production in culture conditions. In a challenge study, isolates possessing the msa3 locus reduced median survival in juvenile chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) by an average of 34% at doses of ≤105 cells per fish compared to isolates lacking the msa3 locus. In contrast, no difference in survival was observed at the highest dose, 106 cells per fish. The phenotype associated with the msa3 locus and its nonuniform distribution may contribute to observed differences in virulence among R. salmoninarum isolates.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Northwest Fisheries ScienceCenter, REUT Division, 2725 Montlake Blvd. East, Seattle, WA 98112. Phone: (206) 860-3279. Fax: (206) 860-3467. E-mail: Linda.Rhodes{at}noaa.gov.

{dagger} Present address: Peace Corps/Zambia, Kasama, Zambia.

{ddagger} Present address: Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, Portland, OR 97202.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, November 2004, p. 6488-6494, Vol. 70, No. 11
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.11.6488-6494.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Wiens, G. D., Rockey, D. D., Wu, Z., Chang, J., Levy, R., Crane, S., Chen, D. S., Capri, G. R., Burnett, J. R., Sudheesh, P. S., Schipma, M. J., Burd, H., Bhattacharyya, A., Rhodes, L. D., Kaul, R., Strom, M. S. (2008). Genome Sequence of the Fish Pathogen Renibacterium salmoninarum Suggests Reductive Evolution away from an Environmental Arthrobacter Ancestor. J. Bacteriol. 190: 6970-6982 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Coady, A. M., Murray, A. L., Elliott, D. G., Rhodes, L. D. (2006). Both msa Genes in Renibacterium salmoninarum Are Needed for Full Virulence in Bacterial Kidney Disease. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 2672-2678 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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