Comparative genomics of Brucella melitensis strain CMCC 55210 and its rough mutant strain CMCC55210a

Brucellosis is a bacterial infectious disease affecting a wide range of mammals and a neglected zoonosis caused by species of the genetically homogenous genus Brucella. As in most studies on bacterial diseases, research in brucellosis is carried out by using reference strains as canonical models to understand the mechanisms underlying host pathogen interactions. We performed whole genome sequencing analysis of the reference strain Brucella melitensis CMCC55210 and its attenuated strain CMCC 55210a routinely used in our laboratory. Considering the outcome of high resolution genomic techniques in the bacteriology field, the conventional concept of strain definition needs to be revised.