About Mycoplasma

General information:
The smallest and simplest self-replicating bacteria. Over 190 species are known, widely distributed among human, animals, insects and plants.
Mycoplasmas have an extremely small genome (0.58-2.20Mb). The smallest genome of a self-replicating organism known at present is the genome of Mycoplasma genitalium (0.58Mb).
Owing to their limited biosynthetic capabilities, most mycoplasmas are parasites exhibiting strict host and tissue specificities.
Usually cause chronic diseases and persist intheir host for extended periods after infection.
Characteristics:
Large scale horizontal gene transfer.
Gene families encoding proteins displayed on the surface with reiterated sequences in their promoter or coding regions are highly mutable due to slip strand mispairing and have been reported in a number of Mycoplasma species.
Selected genomes: ⇒ comparative pathogenomics ⇐
M. agalactiae PG2, 877438 bp, NC_009497
M. arthritidis 158L3-1, 820453 bp, NC_011025
M. capricolum subsp. capricolum ATCC 27343, 1010023 bp, NC_007633
M. conjunctivae HRC/581, 846214 bp, NC_012806
M. fermentans JER, 977524 bp, NC_014552
M. gallisepticum str. R(low), 1012800 bp, NC_004829
M. genitalium G37, 580076 bp, NC_000908
M. hominis ATCC 23114, 665445 bp, NC_013511
M. hyopneumoniae 232, 892758 bp, NC_006360
M. hyopneumoniae 7448, 920079 bp, NC_007332
M. hyopneumoniae J, 897405 bp, NC_007295
M. mobile 163K, 777079 bp, NC_006908
M. mycoides subsp. mycoides SC str. PG1, 1211703 bp, NC_005364
M. penetrans HF-2, 1358633 bp, NC_004432
M. pneumoniae M129, 816394 bp, NC_000912
M. pulmonis UAB CTIP, 963879 bp, NC_002771
M. synoviae 53, 799476 bp, NC_007294
Related publications:
Fraser CM, et al., 1995. The minimal gene complement of Mycoplasma genitalium. Science 270(5235):397-403.
Himmelreich R, et al., 1996. Complete sequence analysis of the genome of the bacterium Mycoplasma pneumoniae. Nucleic Acids Res. 24(22):4420-4429.
Chambaud I, et al., 2001. The complete genome sequence of the murine respiratory pathogen Mycoplasma pulmonis. Nucleic Acids Res 29(10):2145-2153.
Sasaki Y, et al., 2002. The complete genomic sequence of Mycoplasma penetrans, an intracellular bacterial pathogen in humans. Nucleic Acids Res. 30(23):5293-5300.
Geary SJ, et al., 2003. The complete genome sequence of the avian pathogen Mycoplasma gallisepticum strain R. Microbiology 149:2307-2316.
Westberg J, et al., 2004. The genome sequence of Mycoplasma mycoides subsp. mycoides SC type strain PG1T, the causative agent of contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP). Genome Res. 14(2):221-227.
Jaffe JD, et al., 2004. The complete genome and proteome of Mycoplasma mobile. Genome Res. 14(8):1447-1461.
Minion FC, et al., 2004. The genome sequence of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae strain 232, the agent of swine mycoplasmosis. J. Bacteriol. 186(21):7123-7133.
Vasconcelos AT, et al., 2005. Swine and poultry pathogens: the complete genome sequences of two strains of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae and a strain of Mycoplasma synoviae. J Bacteriol 187(16):5568-5577.
Sirand-Pugnet P, et al., 2007. Being pathogenic, plastic, and sexual while living with a nearly minimal bacterial genome. PLoS Genet. 3(5):e75.
Figures:
Schematic diagram of virulence factors in mycoplasmas (From: Yiwen C, et al., 2021. Infection strategies of mycoplasmas: Unraveling the panoply of virulence factors. Virulence 12:788-817.).

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