Conserved Patterns of Symmetric Inversion in the Genome Evolution of Bordetella Respiratory Pathogens

Abstract

Bordetella pertussis is the primary agent of whooping cough (pertussis). The Bordetella genus includes additional pathogens of animals and humans, including some that cause pertussis-like respiratory illness. The chromosome of B. pertussis has previously been shown to exhibit considerable structural rearrangement, but insufficient data have prevented comparable investigation in related species. In this study, we analyze chromosome structure variation in several Bordetella species to gain a generalized understanding of rearrangement patterns in this genus. Just as in B. pertussis , we observed inversions in other species that likely result from common mutational processes. We used these data to further predict additional, unobserved inversions, suggesting that specific genome structures may be preferred in each species.