@article{mbs:/content/journal/micro/10.1099/13500872-142-7-1847, author = "Oyston, Petra C. F. and Russell, Paul and Williamson, E. Diane and Titball, Richard W.", title = "An aroA mutant of Yersinia pestis is attenuated in guinea-pigs, but virulent in mice", journal= "Microbiology", year = "1996", volume = "142", number = "7", pages = "1847-1853", doi = "https://doi.org/10.1099/13500872-142-7-1847", url = "https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/micro/10.1099/13500872-142-7-1847", publisher = "Microbiology Society", issn = "1465-2080", type = "Journal Article", keywords = "Yersinia pestis", keywords = "aroA", abstract = "This study describes a PCR-based approach for the production of a rationally attenuated mutant of Yersinia pestis. Degenerate primers were used to amplify a fragment encoding 91.45% of the aroA gene of Y. pestis MP6 which was cloned into pUC18. The remainder of the gene was isolated by inverse PCR. The gene was sequenced and a restriction map was generated. The Y. pestis aroA gene had 75.9% identity with the aroA gene of Yersinia enterocolitica. The cloned gene was inactivated in vitro and reintroduced into Y. pestis strain GB using the suicide vector pGP704. A stable aro-defective mutant, Y. pestis GBΔaroA, was isolated and its virulence was examined in vivo. The mutant was attenuated in guinea-pigs and capable of inducing a protective immune response against challenge with the virulent Y. pestis strain GB. Unusually for an aro-defective mutant, the Y. pestis aroA mutant was virulent in mice, with a median dose which induced morbidity or death similar to that of the wild-type, although time to death was significantly prolonged.", }