PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Nikola Palevich
AU  - Faith P. Palevich
AU  - Paul H. Maclean
AU  - Eric Altermann
AU  - Amanda Gardner
AU  - Sara Burgess
AU  - John Mills
AU  - Gale Brightwell
TI  - Comparative genomics of <em>Clostridium</em> species associated with vacuum-packed meat spoilage
AID  - 10.1101/2020.09.03.282111
DP  - 2020 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 2020.09.03.282111
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/09/03/2020.09.03.282111.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/09/03/2020.09.03.282111.full
AB  - Bacterial species belonging to the Clostridium genera have been recognized as causative agents of blown pack spoilage (BPS) in vacuum packed meat products. Whole-genome sequencing of six New Zealand psychrotolerant Clostridium isolates derived from three meat production animal types and their environments was performed to examine their roles in BPS. Comparative genome analyses have provided insight into the genomic diversity and physiology of these bacteria and divides Clostridia into two separate species clusters. BPS-associated Clostridia encode a large and diverse spectrum of degradative carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes). In total, 516 glycoside hydrolases (GHs), 93 carbohydrate esterases (CEs), 21 polysaccharide lyases (PLs), 434 glycosyl transferases (GTs) and 211 carbohydrate-binding protein modules (CBM) with predicted activities involved in the breakdown and transport of carbohydrates were identified. Clostridia genomes have different patterns of CAZyme families and vary greatly in the number of genes within each CAZy category, suggesting some level of functional redundancy. These results suggest that BPS-associated Clostridia occupy similar environmental niches but apply different carbohydrate metabolism strategies to be able to co-exist and cause meat spoilage.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.