Soil Collected from a Single Great Smoky Mountains Trail Contains a Diversity of Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria spp.
Claxton ML, Hudson LK, Bryan DW, Denes TG. 2022. Soil Collected from a Single Great Smoky Mountains Trail Contains a Diversity of Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria spp.. Microbiology Spectrum. :1-11
ABSTRACT: Listeria monocytogenes, a foodborne pathogen, and other Listeria spp. are present in natural environments. Isolating and characterizing strains from natural reservoirs can provide insight into the prevalence and diversity of Listeria spp. in these environments, elucidate their contribution to contamination of agricultural and food processing environments and food products, and lead to the discovery of novel species. In this study, we evaluated the diversity of Listeria spp. isolated from soil in a small region of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most biodiverse national park in the U.S. National Park system. Of the 17 Listeria isolates recovered, whole-genome sequencing revealed that 14 were distinct strains. The strains represented a diversity of Listeria species (L. monocytogenes [n = 9], L. cossartiae subsp. cossartiae [n = 1], L. marthii [n = 1], L. booriae [n = 1], and a potentially novel Listeria sp. [n = 2]), as well as a diversity of sequence types based on multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and core genome MLST, including many novel designations. The isolates were not closely related ($99.99% average nucleotide identity) to any isolates in public databases (NCBI, PATRIC), which also indicated novelty. The Listeria samples isolated in this study were collected from high-elevation sites near a creek that ultimately leads to the Mississippi River; thus, Listeria present in this natural environment could potentially travel downstream to a large region that includes portions of nine southeastern and midwestern U.S. states. This study provides insight into the diversity of Listeria spp. in the Great Smoky Mountains and indicates that this environment is a reservoir of novel Listeria spp.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Claxton, Michelle; Hudson, Lauren; Bryan, Daniel; Denes, Thomas
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- ATBI, biodiversity, GRSM-02152, Listeria, Listeria booriae, Listeria cossartiae, Listeria marthii, Listeria monocytogenes, microbiology, phages, soils, Two mile, viruses