Of Mice and Men....and Plants: Comparative Genomics of the Dual Lifestyles of Enteric Pathogens.

Outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness, linked to the consumption of fruits, vegetables, and sprouts, continue to capture the attention of the general public and scientists. The recurrence of these outbreaks, despite heightened producer and consumer awareness, combined with improved sanitation protocols and technology, can be explained by the hypothesis that enteric pathogens, such as nontyphoidal Salmonella spp. and enterovirulent Escherichia coli, have evolved to exploit plants as alternative hosts. This review explores the genetic and genomic context for this hypothesis. Even though gastroenteritis outbreaks associated with the consumption of produce have been caused by a limited number of strains or serovars, robust evidence in support of the polymorphism hypothesis is lacking. While some housekeeping genes with additional virulence functions in animal models contribute to the fitness of enterics within plants, canonical virulence determinants required for animal infections, such as the type III secretion system (T3SS) and effectors, by and large, are of little consequence in interactions with plants. Conversely, despite possessing some functions more commonly found in phytobacteria, human enteric pathogens do not appear to rely on the same strategies for plant colonization. Instead, it is likely that nontyphoidal Salmonella and enterovirulent E. coli have evolved a set of functions distinct from its virulence regulon and from those used by phytopathogens.