Evolution and diversity: revealing the bacteria responsible for leptospirosis

An international research group has revealed several new bacterial species that may be responsible for leptospirosis, an emerging animal-borne disease, using genome sequencing.

Every year, more than a million people contract leptospirosis, an emerging animal-borne disease caused by bacteria belonging to the genus Leptospira. To improve our understanding of this disease, the genomes of several species of Leptospira were sequenced by scientists from the Institut Pasteur International Network. Their findings, published in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, reveal 30 new species and provide new information about the genetic content of the bacteria responsible for leptospirosis.

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