Genetic Diversity and Potential Virulence of <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> Isolates Originating from Polish Artisanal Cheeses
Renata Pyz-Łukasik,
Waldemar Paszkiewicz,
Michał Kiełbus,
Monika Ziomek,
Michał Gondek,
Piotr Domaradzki,
Katarzyna Michalak,
Dorota Pietras-Ożga
Affiliations
Renata Pyz-Łukasik
Department of Food Hygiene of Animal Origin, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Akademicka 12, 20-033 Lublin, Poland
Waldemar Paszkiewicz
Department of Food Hygiene of Animal Origin, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Akademicka 12, 20-033 Lublin, Poland
Michał Kiełbus
Department of Experimental Hematooncology, Medical University of Lublin, Chodźki 1, 20-093 Lublin, Poland
Monika Ziomek
Department of Food Hygiene of Animal Origin, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Akademicka 12, 20-033 Lublin, Poland
Michał Gondek
Department of Food Hygiene of Animal Origin, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Akademicka 12, 20-033 Lublin, Poland
Piotr Domaradzki
Department of Quality Assessment and Processing of Animal Products, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Akademicka 13, 20-950 Lublin, Poland
Katarzyna Michalak
Department of Epizootiology and Clinic of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Głęboka 30, 20-612 Lublin, Poland
Dorota Pietras-Ożga
Department of Epizootiology and Clinic of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Głęboka 30, 20-612 Lublin, Poland
Artisanal cheeses can be sources of Listeria monocytogenes and cause disease in humans. This bacterial pathogen is a species of diverse genotypic and phenotypic characteristics. The aim of the study was to characterize 32 isolates of L. monocytogenes isolated in 2014–2018 from artisanal cheeses. The isolates were characterized using whole genome sequencing and bioinformatics analysis. The artisanal cheese isolates resolved to four molecular groups: 46.9% of them to IIa (1/2a-3a), 31.2% to IVb (4ab-4b-4d-4e), 12.5% to IIc (1/2c-3c), and 9.4% to IIb (1/2b-3b-7). Two evolutionary lineages emerged: lineage II having 59.4% of the isolates and lineage I having 40.6%. The sequence types (ST) totaled 18: ST6 (15.6% of the isolates), ST2, ST20, ST26, and ST199 (each 9.4%), ST7 and ST9 (each 6.3%), and ST1, ST3, ST8, ST16, ST87, ST91, ST121, ST122, ST195, ST217, and ST580 (each 3.1%). There were 15 detected clonal complexes (CC): CC6 (15.6% of isolates), CC9 (12.5%), CC2, CC20, CC26, and CC199 (each 9.4%), CC7 and CC8 (each 6.3%), and CC1, CC3, CC14, CC87, CC121, CC195, and CC217 (each 3.1%). The isolates were varied in their virulence genes and the differences concerned: inl, actA, LIPI-3, ami, gtcA, aut, vip, and lntA.
