Short Report

Francisella tularensis subsp. novicida isolated from a human in Arizona

Dawn N Birdsell¹ , Tasha Stewart² , Amy J Vogler¹ , Elisabeth Lawaczeck³ , Alisa Diggs² , Tammy L Sylvester² , Jordan L Buchhagen^1,4 , Raymond K Auerbach^1,5 , Paul Keim^1,4 and David M Wagner¹

¹Center for Microbial Genetics and Genomics, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011-4073, USA

²Maricopa County Department of Public Health, Phoenix, AZ 85012, USA

³Arizona Department of Health Services, Phoenix, AZ 85007, USA

⁴Translational Genomics Research Institute, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA

⁵Program in Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA

author email corresponding author email

BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:223doi:10.1186/1756-0500-2-223

Published:	6 November 2009

Abstract

Background

Francisella tularensis is the etiologic agent of tularemia and is classified as a select agent by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Currently four known subspecies of F. tularensis that differ in virulence and geographical distribution are recognized:tularensis (type A), holarctica (type B), mediasiatica, and novicida. Because of the Select Agent status and differences in virulence and geographical location, the molecular analysis of any clinical case of tularemia is of particular interest. We analyzed an unusual Francisella clinical isolate from a human infection in Arizona using multiple DNA-based approaches.

Findings

We report that the isolate is F. tularensis subsp. novicida, a subspecies that is rarely isolated.

Conclusion

The rarity of this novicida subspecies in clinical settings makes each case study important for our understanding of its role in disease and its genetic relationship with other F. tularensis subspecies.