Highly prevalent cargo genes of F plasmids harbored in pathogenic Escherichia coli
- 1Universitat de Barcelona
Abstract
Analysis of prevalent orthogroups (OGs) in a collection of F plasmids from extraintestinal Escherichia coli ST131 isolates has led to the identification of two groups of previously uncharacterized cargo genes that may be widely distributed among F plasmids of pathogenic E. coli. Group 1 comprises four OGs whose encoded proteins are predicted to be involved in transport-related functions. The corresponding genes cluster with other genes associated with metabolism and are highly prevalent in extraintestinal ST131 isolates. Group 2 comprises several OGs whose encoded proteins currently have unknown functions. These OGs are present in a large proportion of F plasmids from both intestinal and extraintestinal E. coli isolates. The corresponding genes cluster within an F-plasmid region that also contains genes involved in DNA metabolism, suggesting that the proteins encoded by these newly identified OGs may likewise contribute to F-plasmid DNA biology. Characterizing the functions of these newly identified proteins may improve our understanding of the contribution of F plasmid to E. coli virulence and reveal novel targets for antimicrobial intervention, either by limiting F-plasmid dissemination among multidrug-resistant (MDR) E. coli strains or by directly targeting plasmid-carrying bacteria.
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BibTeX
@misc{guiraorico2026highly,
title = {{Highly prevalent cargo genes of F plasmids harbored in pathogenic Escherichia coli}},
author = {S. Guirao-Rico and S. C. Flament-Simon and C. Madrid and C. Balsalobre and M. Huttener and J. E. Blanco and J. Blanco and J. Rozas and A. Juarez},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.64898/2026.11.04.764203},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.11.04.764203v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Highly prevalent cargo genes of F plasmids harbored in pathogenic Escherichia coli
AU - S. Guirao-Rico
AU - S. C. Flament-Simon
AU - C. Madrid
AU - C. Balsalobre
AU - M. Huttener
AU - J. E. Blanco
AU - J. Blanco
AU - J. Rozas
AU - A. Juarez
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/04
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.11.04.764203
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.11.04.764203v1
AB - Analysis of prevalent orthogroups (OGs) in a collection of F plasmids from extraintestinal Escherichia coli ST131 isolates has led to the identification of two groups of previously uncharacterized cargo genes that may be widely distributed among F plasmids of pathogenic E. coli. Group 1 comprises four OGs whose encoded proteins are predicted to be involved in transport-related functions. The corresponding genes cluster with other genes associated with metabolism and are highly prevalent in extraintestinal ST131 isolates. Group 2 comprises several OGs whose encoded proteins currently have unknown functions. These OGs are present in a large proportion of F plasmids from both intestinal and extraintestinal E. coli isolates. The corresponding genes cluster within an F-plasmid region that also contains genes involved in DNA metabolism, suggesting that the proteins encoded by these newly identified OGs may likewise contribute to F-plasmid DNA biology. Characterizing the functions of these newly identified proteins may improve our understanding of the contribution of F plasmid to E. coli virulence and reveal novel targets for antimicrobial intervention, either by limiting F-plasmid dissemination among multidrug-resistant (MDR) E. coli strains or by directly targeting plasmid-carrying bacteria.
ER -