Foreman-Wykert Amy K, Miller Jeff F
Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, 10833 LeConte Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1747, USA.
Trends Microbiol. 2003 Mar;11(3):105-8. doi: 10.1016/s0966-842x(03)00007-6.
Historically, pathogenesis research has focused on the identification and characterization of virulence factors. More recently, 'anti-virulence' genes have been discovered. Mutations in these loci result in a hypervirulent phenotype, as measured by a lower lethal dose, a colonization advantage, reduced clearance or decreased survival time of the host. If these genes function to reduce pathogen virulence, why have they been retained? Multiple hypotheses have been offered to explain this phenomenon.
从历史上看，发病机制研究一直专注于毒力因子的鉴定和表征。最近，人们发现了“抗毒力”基因。这些基因座的突变会导致高毒力表型，通过较低的致死剂量、定殖优势、清除率降低或宿主存活时间缩短来衡量。如果这些基因的功能是降低病原体的毒力，那么它们为什么会保留下来呢？人们提出了多种假说来解释这一现象。
