RNA-seq of an M. bovis knock-in containing the M. tuberculosis pknH gene.

Conservation of RD900 in M. bovis may affect PknH function, having a potential role in its virulence and evolutionary adaptation. To explore this hypothesis, we constructed two M. bovis 'knock-in' strains containing the M. tuberculosis pknH gene. Evaluation of their virulence phenotype in mice revealed a reduced virulence of both M. bovis knock-in strains compared to the wild type, suggesting that PknH plays an important role in the differential virulence phenotype of M. bovis vs M. tuberculosis. We also performed RNA-seq to determine expression differences between wild type and one of the mutants.