Vergnaud Gilles, Antwerpen Markus H, Grass Gregor
Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), University Paris-Saclay, 91198 Gif-sur-Yvette, France.
Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology (IMB), 80937 Munich, Germany.
Pathogens. 2025 Oct 14;14(10):1041. doi: 10.3390/pathogens14101041.
is the etiological agent of the zoonotic disease anthrax. The pathogen has colonized many regions of all inhabited continents. Increasing evidence points to a strong contribution of anthropogenic activities (trade) in this almost global spread. This article contributes further genomic data from 21 strains, including 19 isolated in Germany, aiming to support and detail the human role in anthrax dispersal. The newly sequenced genomes belong to the lineage predominant in China. This lineage is remarkable because of its phylogenetic structure. A polytomy with nine branches radiating from a central node was identified by whole-genome single-nucleotide polymorphism (wgSNP) analysis. Strains from Germany populate two among the nine branches. Detailed analysis of the polytomy indicates that it most likely emerged in China. We propose that the polytomy is the result of the import of contaminated animal products in a limited spatiotemporal frame, followed by the distribution of these products to different locations within China, where new lineages then became independently established. Currently available data point to Bengal as a likely geographic source of the original contamination, and the history of trade exchanges between Bengal and China agrees with the early fifteenth century as a likely time period. The subsequent exports to Germany would have occurred during the 19th century according to German trade history. Notably, Germany has been experiencing localized anthrax outbreaks from this trade heritage up into the 21st century.
是一种人畜共患疾病炭疽的病原体。该病原体已在所有有人居住大陆的许多地区定殖。越来越多的证据表明，人为活动（贸易）在这种几乎全球性的传播中起到了很大作用。本文提供了来自21株菌株的更多基因组数据，其中包括在德国分离的19株，旨在支持并详细说明人类在炭疽传播中的作用。新测序的基因组属于在中国占主导地位的谱系。这个谱系因其系统发育结构而引人注目。通过全基因组单核苷酸多态性（wgSNP）分析，鉴定出一个从中心节点辐射出九个分支的多歧分支。来自德国的菌株分布在九个分支中的两个。对该多歧分支的详细分析表明，它很可能起源于中国。我们认为，该多歧分支是在有限的时空框架内进口受污染动物产品的结果，随后这些产品在中国境内不同地点进行了分发，新的谱系随后在这些地点独立形成。目前可得的数据表明孟加拉是最初污染的可能地理来源，而孟加拉与中国之间的贸易交流历史与15世纪早期作为可能的时间段相吻合。根据德国贸易历史，随后向德国的出口可能发生在19世纪。值得注意的是，德国一直因这种贸易遗产而经历局部炭疽疫情爆发，直至21世纪。
