Ovine and Caprine Strains of on Czech Farms-A Comparative Study.

Caseous lymphadenitis (CLA) is a worldwide disease of small ruminants caused by , a facultative intracellular pathogen that is able to survive and multiply in certain white blood cells of the host. In this study, 33 strains of were isolated from sheep and goats suffering from CLA on nine farms in the Czech Republic. All these strains were tested for their antibiotic susceptibility, ability to form a biofilm and resistance to the effects of commonly used disinfectant agents. To better understand the virulence of , the genomes of strains were sequenced and comparative genomic analysis was performed with another 123 genomes of the same species, including and biovars, downloaded from the NCBI. The genetic determinants for the virulence factors responsible for adherence and virulence factors specialized for iron uptake and exotoxin phospholipase D were revealed in every analyzed genome. Carbohydrate-Active Enzymes were compared, revealing the presence of genetic determinants encoding exo-α-sialidase (GH33) and the CP40 protein in most of the analyzed genomes. Thirty-three Czech strains of were identified as the biovar on the basis of comparative genome analysis. All the compared genomes of the biovar strains were highly similar regardless of their country of origin or host, reflecting their clonal behavior.