Project name: Comparative Genomics Lactobacillus casei group

Description: Although the genotypic and phenotypic properties of the Lactobacillus casei group have been studied extensively, the taxonomic structure has been the subject of debate for a long time. Here, we performed a large-scale comparative analysis using 183 publicly available genomes, supplemented with a Lactobacillus strain isolated from the human upper respiratory tract. Based on this analysis we identified inconsistencies in the taxonomy and reclassified all genomes according to their most closely related type strain. This led to the identification of a catalase-encoding gene in all ten L. casei sensu stricto strains making it the first described catalase-positive species in the Lactobacillus genus. Moreover, we found that six out of ten L. casei genomes contained a SecA2/SecY2 gene cluster with two putative glycosylated surface adhesin proteins. Altogether, our results highlight current inconsistencies in the taxonomy of the L. casei group and reveals new clade-associated functional features.

Data type: Genome sequencing and assembly

Sample scope: Monoisolate

Last updated: 2017-07-24