Corynebacterium diphtheriae produces a potent bacteriophage-encoded protein exotoxin, diphtheria toxin, which causes the symptoms of diphtheria. This potentially fatal infectious disease is controlled in many developed countries by an effective immunisation programme. However, the disease has made a dramatic return in recent years, in particular within the Eastern European region.
C. diphtheriae biotype gravis strain NCTC13129 was isolated in 1997 from a 72-year-old female with clinical diphtheria who had returned to the UK from a Baltic cruise.
Published Genome Data
The C. diphtheriae NCTC 13129 genome is composed of a single circular chromosome of 2,488,635 bp, and was sequenced in collaboration with Dr. Androulla Efstratiou of the W.H.O. collaborating centre for diphtheria, Respiratory and Systemic Infection Laboratory, at the Health Protection Agency.
The fully annotated genome is available from the EMBL/GenBank databases with accession number BX248353.
Shotgun and assembly data from this project are available from our FTP site.
The complete genome sequence and analysis of Corynebacterium diphtheriae NCTC13129.
Nucleic acids research 2003;31;22;6516-23
Data Use Statement
This sequencing centre plans on publishing the completed and annotated sequences in a peer-reviewed journal as soon as possible. Permission of the principal investigator should be obtained before publishing analyses of the sequence/open reading frames/genes on a chromosome or genome scale. See our data sharing policy.
Please address all sequencing enquiries to: email@example.com