This Article Full Text (PDF) Other Versions of this Article: JB.00116-06v1 189/5/2133    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Jones, K. M. Articles by Walker, G. C. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Jones, K. M. Articles by Walker, G. C.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

J. Bacteriol. doi:10.1128/JB.00116-06
Copyright (c) 2006, American Society for Microbiology and/or the Listed Authors/Institutions. All Rights Reserved.

The type IV secretion system of Sinorhizobium meliloti strain 1021 is required for conjugation, but not for intracellular symbiosis

Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: gwalker{at}mit.edu.

	Abstract

The type IV secretion system (T4SS) of the plant intracellular symbiont Sinorhizobium meliloti 1021 is required for conjugal transfer of DNA. However, it is not required for host invasion and persistence, unlike the T4SS of closely related mammalian intracellular pathogens. A comparison of the requirement for a bacterial T4SS in plant vs. animal host invasion suggests an important difference in the intracellular niches occupied by these bacteria.