Pathogenicity and Its Implications in Taxonomy: The <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> Case
The intracellular pathogens of the genus <i>Brucella</i> are phylogenetically close to <i>Ochrobactrum</i>, a diverse group of free-living bacteria with a few species occasionally infecting medically compromised patients. A group of taxonomists recently included all <i>...
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MDPI AG
2022-03-01
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| Series: | Pathogens |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/11/3/377 |
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| author | Edgardo Moreno José María Blasco Jean Jacques Letesson Jean Pierre Gorvel Ignacio Moriyón |
| author_facet | Edgardo Moreno José María Blasco Jean Jacques Letesson Jean Pierre Gorvel Ignacio Moriyón |
| author_sort | Edgardo Moreno |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The intracellular pathogens of the genus <i>Brucella</i> are phylogenetically close to <i>Ochrobactrum</i>, a diverse group of free-living bacteria with a few species occasionally infecting medically compromised patients. A group of taxonomists recently included all <i>Ochrobactrum</i> organisms in the genus <i>Brucella</i> based on global genome analyses and alleged equivalences with genera such as <i>Mycobacterium</i>. Here, we demonstrate that such equivalencies are incorrect because they overlook the complexities of pathogenicity. By summarizing <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> divergences in lifestyle, structure, physiology, population, closed versus open pangenomes, genomic traits, and pathogenicity, we show that when they are adequately understood, they are highly relevant in taxonomy and not unidimensional quantitative characters. Thus, the <i>Ochrobactrum</i> and <i>Brucella</i> differences are not limited to their assignments to different “risk-groups”, a biologically (and hence, taxonomically) oversimplified description that, moreover, does not support ignoring the <i>nomen periculosum</i> rule, as proposed. Since the epidemiology, prophylaxis, diagnosis, and treatment are thoroughly unrelated, merging free-living <i>Ochrobactrum</i> organisms with highly pathogenic <i>Brucella</i> organisms brings evident risks for veterinarians, medical doctors, and public health authorities who confront brucellosis, a significant zoonosis worldwide. Therefore, from taxonomical and practical standpoints, the <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> genera must be maintained apart. Consequently, we urge researchers, culture collections, and databases to keep their canonical nomenclature. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:01:42Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-68124fa3fe5544b986c2857e7c7f276f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0817 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:01:42Z |
| publishDate | 2022-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Pathogens |
| spelling | doaj.art-68124fa3fe5544b986c2857e7c7f276f2023-11-30T21:53:11ZengMDPI AGPathogens2076-08172022-03-0111337710.3390/pathogens11030377Pathogenicity and Its Implications in Taxonomy: The <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> CaseEdgardo Moreno0José María Blasco1Jean Jacques Letesson2Jean Pierre Gorvel3Ignacio Moriyón4Escuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Universidad Nacional, Heredia 40101, Costa RicaCentro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria, Instituto Agroalimentario de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza, 50059 Zaragoza, SpainUnité de Recherche en Biologie des Microorganismes, Faculty of Science, University of Namur, 5000 Namur, BelgiumCentre d’Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy, Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, INSERM, CIML, 13009 Marseille, FranceInstituto de Salud Tropical y Departamento de Microbiología y Parasitología, Universidad de Navarra, 31008 Pamplona, SpainThe intracellular pathogens of the genus <i>Brucella</i> are phylogenetically close to <i>Ochrobactrum</i>, a diverse group of free-living bacteria with a few species occasionally infecting medically compromised patients. A group of taxonomists recently included all <i>Ochrobactrum</i> organisms in the genus <i>Brucella</i> based on global genome analyses and alleged equivalences with genera such as <i>Mycobacterium</i>. Here, we demonstrate that such equivalencies are incorrect because they overlook the complexities of pathogenicity. By summarizing <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> divergences in lifestyle, structure, physiology, population, closed versus open pangenomes, genomic traits, and pathogenicity, we show that when they are adequately understood, they are highly relevant in taxonomy and not unidimensional quantitative characters. Thus, the <i>Ochrobactrum</i> and <i>Brucella</i> differences are not limited to their assignments to different “risk-groups”, a biologically (and hence, taxonomically) oversimplified description that, moreover, does not support ignoring the <i>nomen periculosum</i> rule, as proposed. Since the epidemiology, prophylaxis, diagnosis, and treatment are thoroughly unrelated, merging free-living <i>Ochrobactrum</i> organisms with highly pathogenic <i>Brucella</i> organisms brings evident risks for veterinarians, medical doctors, and public health authorities who confront brucellosis, a significant zoonosis worldwide. Therefore, from taxonomical and practical standpoints, the <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> genera must be maintained apart. Consequently, we urge researchers, culture collections, and databases to keep their canonical nomenclature.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/11/3/377<i>Brucella</i><i>Ochrobactrum</i>brucellosisgenusspeciespangenome |
| spellingShingle | Edgardo Moreno José María Blasco Jean Jacques Letesson Jean Pierre Gorvel Ignacio Moriyón Pathogenicity and Its Implications in Taxonomy: The <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> Case Pathogens <i>Brucella</i> <i>Ochrobactrum</i> brucellosis genus species pangenome |
| title | Pathogenicity and Its Implications in Taxonomy: The <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> Case |
| title_full | Pathogenicity and Its Implications in Taxonomy: The <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> Case |
| title_fullStr | Pathogenicity and Its Implications in Taxonomy: The <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> Case |
| title_full_unstemmed | Pathogenicity and Its Implications in Taxonomy: The <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> Case |
| title_short | Pathogenicity and Its Implications in Taxonomy: The <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Ochrobactrum</i> Case |
| title_sort | pathogenicity and its implications in taxonomy the i brucella i and i ochrobactrum i case |
| topic | <i>Brucella</i> <i>Ochrobactrum</i> brucellosis genus species pangenome |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/11/3/377 |
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