Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:27:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2010-06-29Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:08:22Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 costa_lf_me_botfmvz.pdf: 594547 bytes, checksum: 7d609573704d70bd41e6633e86629767 (MD5) / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) / Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) / O diagnóstico da infecção por Brucella ovis em ovinos usualmente é realizado por meio de exame clínico, testes sorológicos e bacteriologia. Devido às limitações apresentadas pelas técnicas, o diagnóstico é geralmente obtido mediante aplicação de duas ou mais técnicas para obtenção de um resultado conclusivo. A Reação em Cadeia pela Polimerase (PCR) tem sido utilizada como ferramenta diagnóstica aplicável, pois é sensível, pouco dispendiosa, rápida, simples de ser realizada e permite o diagnóstico específico do agente infectante. Neste trabalho foram realizados dois experimentos. No primeiro compararam-se os percentuais de positividade em duas técnicas de PCR padronizadas, sendo a primeira gênero-específica e a seguinte espécie-específica, em 191 amostras de sêmen e 214 de urina provenientes de ovinos inoculados experimentalmente com a cepa de B. ovis REO 198. Posteriormente, desenvolveu-se a nested PCR a partir do produto amplificado da reação espécie-específica, e o percentual de positividade obtido pela nested PCR foi comparado aos obtidos pelas PCRs gênero-específica e espécie-específica. Foi observada diferença significativa no percentual de positividade (P<0,05) entre PCR gênero-específica e PCR espécie-específica (24,08% e 15,18%, respectivamente) para amostras de sêmen de ovinos e concordância moderada entre os resultados destas técnicas (kappa de 0,623); para amostras de urina, não houve diferença significativa entre as positividades obtidas pela PCR gênero-específica e a espécie-específica (10,28% e 7,011%, respectivamente), e a concordância entre os resultados foi moderada (kappa de 0,6167). A nested PCR espécie-específica apresentou percentual de positividade significativamente maior (P<0,001) quando comparada às PCRs gênero-específica e espécie-específica em amostras de sêmen (53,93%) e de urina (49,07%)... / Diagnosis of Brucella ovis infection in rams is routinely performed by clinical examination, serology and bacteriology. Due to limitations presented by each technique, the diagnosis is usually made by two or more techniques to obtain a conclusive result. The Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) has been used as a diagnostic tool applicable because it is sensitive, inexpensive, rapid, simple to perform and allows the specific diagnosis of infectious agents. In this study, the positivity percentages of two techniques of PCR previous described, one genus-specific and other species-specific, were measured in 191 semen and 214 urine samples from sheep experimentally infected with strain of B. ovis REO 198. Then, a species-specific nested PCR was developed from amplified products of the species-specific PCR, and the percentage of positivity obtained by nested PCR was compared to those obtained by genus and species-specific PCRs. Significant difference was observed when comparing the percentage of positivity (P <0.05) between genus-specific and species-specific PCR (24.08% and 15.18%, respectively) in semen samples from sheep, and there was moderate agreement between the results of these techniques ( kappa 0.623). In urine, no significant difference between the percentages of positives samples obtained by genus and species-specific PCR was observed (10.28% and 7.011% respectively) and the concordance between the results was moderate (kappa 0.6167). The species-specific nested PCR showed significantly higher percentage of positivity (P <0.001) when compared to genus-specific and species-specific PCRs in semen (53.93%) and urine (49.07%). Thus, according to the results obtained in this experiment, the species-specific PCR showed the lower percentage of positivity when compared to genus-specific PCR, but the implementation of the species-specific nested PCR showed highly significant increase... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Submitted by Marco Antônio de Ramos Chagas (mchagas@ufv.br) on 2018-08-30T18:28:46Z No. of bitstreams: 1 texto completo.pdf: 13316435 bytes, checksum: b0412364dab9dd00515656dc38ddb78d (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-30T18:28:46Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 texto completo.pdf: 13316435 bytes, checksum: b0412364dab9dd00515656dc38ddb78d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-03-22 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / A brucelose bovina, causada pela bactéria Brucella Abortus, é uma doença presente em to- das as regiões do Brasil e provoca elevados prejuízos econômicos. O Programa Nacional de Controle e Erradicação de Brucelose e Tuberculose Animal (PNCEBT) estabeleceu os testes AAT, 2-ME, FC e DBac para realizar o diagnóstico da brucelose bovina. Na ausência de um teste Padrão Ouro, é necessário que o desempenho desses testes diagnósticos seja validado. O presente estudo, teve como objetivo empregar o modelo de classe latente Bayesiano para es- timar as sensibilidades e as especificidades dos testes diagnósticos AAT, 2-ME, FC e DBac, aplicados em amostras de sangue e carcaças de animais suspeitos de brucelose bovina, bem como a prevalência da doença. O conjunto de dados utilizado foi obtido junto ao Laboratório Nacional Agropecuário de Minas Gerais (LANAGRO-MG). Os testes foram avaliados em dois cenários: individualmente e combinados. Os modelos para a avaliação dos testes combinados foram ajustados considerando-se a independência condicional entre os quatro testes e também incorporando-se ao modelo a dependência condicional entre os testes AAT, 2-ME e FC. As aná- lises foram realizadas em R 3.2.5 usando o pacote R2OpenBUGS. Quanto à avaliação dos testes combinados, os resultados mostraram que os testes AAT, 2-ME e FC são condicionalmente in- dependentes. O teste FC foi o mais sensível, o DBac o menos sensível e os testes AAT, FC e DBac foram os mais específicos. Concluiu-se que nenhum dos quatro testes pode ser utilizado sozinho para o diagnóstico da brucelose bovina. Uma baixa sensibilidade foi encontrada para o teste AAT, resultado que diverge dos relatos geralmente encontrados na literatura. Portanto, recomenda-se que contínuos estudos sejam realizados para que a tomada de decisão dos pesqui- sadores não seja comprometida. Adicionalmente, concluiu-se que o modelo de classe latente bayesiano permitiu estimar os parâmetros de interesse satisfatoriamente. / Bovine brucellosis, caused by the bacterium Brucella Abortus, is a disease present in all regions of Brazil and causes high economic losses. The National Program for the Control and Eradi- cation of Brucellosis and Animal Tuberculosis (PNCEBT) established the AAT, 2-ME, FC and DBac tests for the diagnosis of bovine brucellosis. In the absence of a Gold Standard test, the performance of these diagnostic tests must be validated. The aim of the present study was to use the Bayesian latent class model to estimate the sensitivities and specificities of the AAT, 2- ME, FC and DBac diagnostic tests applied to blood samples and carcasses of animals suspected of bovine brucellosis, as well as the prevalence of the disease. The dataset used was obtained from the National Agricultural Laboratory of Minas Gerais (LANAGRO-MG). The tests were evaluated in two scenarios: individually and in combination. The models for the evaluation of the combined tests were adjusted considering the conditional independence between the four tests and also incorporating to the model the conditional dependence between the AAT, 2-ME and FC tests. Analyses were performed in R 3.2.5 using the R2OpenBUGS package. Regarding the evaluation of the combined tests, the results showed that the AAT, 2-ME and FC tests are conditionally independent. The FC test was the most sensitive, the DBac the least sensitive and the AAT, FC and DBac tests were the most specific. It was concluded that none of the four tests can be used alone for the diagnosis of bovine brucellosis. A low sensitivity was found for the AAT test, a result that diverges from the reports generally found in the literature. Therefore, it is recommended that continuous studies be carried out so that the decision-making of the researchers is not compromised. Additionally, it was concluded that the Bayesian latent class model employed allowed to estimate the parameters of interest satisfactorily.

Neospora caninum is an apicomplexan parasite that causes neuromuscular paralysis in dogs and abortions in cattle. N. caninum is responsible for losses of several million dollars to the dairy and beef industries in several parts of the world. The key players in the host immune response to N. caninum include CD4+ T cells, the Th1 cytokines IL-12, Interferon gamma and IgG2a isotype antibodies. There are currently no chemotherapeutic agents that are effective against adult cattle neosporosis. A commercially available, inactivated vaccine induces the undesirable Th2 type of immunity against N. caninum. Therefore, two approaches towards vaccine development against N. caninum that were designed to induce potent cell mediated immunity have been explored in this dissertation. The first approach consisted of the development of a bivalent recombinant vaccine for both brucellosis and neosporosis, while the second approach involved gamma irradiation of N. caninum tachyzoites for use as an attenuated vaccine against N. caninum. Since N. caninum research has been conducted with several strains of mice and the different strains of mice vary in their susceptibility to infection with N. caninum, there is a need to develop a standard lab animal model for N. caninum. A gerbil and a C57BL/6 mouse model for N. caninum vaccine testing have been developed. It was found that the LD50 of N. caninum tachyzoites in gerbils was 9.3 x105 tachyzoites per gerbil delivered intra-peritoneally, (i.p) while for C57BL/6 mice the LD50 was 1.5 x107 tachyzoites per mouse delivered i.p. Vertical transmission rates in C57BL/6 mice infected with N. caninum tachyzoites during mid-gestation were determined and found to be in the range of 96-100%. Putative protective antigens of N. caninum that included MIC1, MIC3, GRA2, GRA6 and SRS2 were expressed in B. abortus strain RB51 to create recombinant vaccine strains. C57BL/6 mice were vaccinated with either the recombinant strains or the irradiated tachyzoites. Antigen specific IgG2a and IgG1 responses and high levels of interferon gamma and IL-10 were induced by vaccination. Mice vaccinated with irradiated tachyzoites, RB51-MIC1 and RB51-GRA6 were completely protected against lethal challenge, while the mice vaccinated with RB51-SRS2, RB51-GRA2 and RB51-MIC3 were partially protected. To determine the efficacy of the vaccines in preventing vertical transmission of N. caninum, mice were vaccinated and bred after administration of a booster dose four weeks after the primary vaccination. Antigen specific IgG1 and IgG2a and significant levels of IFN-ã and IL-10 were detected in vaccinated, pregnant mice. Pregnant mice were challenged with 5 x 106 N. caninum tachyzoites between days 11-13 of pregnancy. Brain tissue was collected from pups three weeks after birth and examined for the presence of N. caninum by a semi-nested PCR. Protection against vertical transmission elicited by the RB51-GRA6, RB51-MIC3, irradiated tachyzoite, RB51-GRA2, RB51-MIC1 and RB51-SRS2 vaccinated groups were 43%, 38%, 34%, 34%, 18%, and 7% respectively. Since not all the antigens that were highly protective against acute disease were not very effective in preventing vertical transmission, the role of the selected antigens in preventing acute disease and vertical transmission appear to differ. Only GRA6 was found to be effective in protecting against an acute lethal challenge as well as preventing vertical transmission 43% of the time. In summary, two animal models for the testing of N. caninum vaccines were developed. N. caninum protective antigens were successfully expressed in B. abortus strain RB51. The irradiated tachyzoite and recombinant RB51-Neospora vaccines were highly effective in protecting against acute neosporosis and partially protective against vertical transmission. Therefore, both these approaches show great promise as practical and effective means to achieve the goal of successful prophylaxis against N. caninum induced abortions and reduce the chances of vertical transmission. / Ph. D.

Brucella abortus is a facultative intracellular bacterial pathogen, which causes abortion in cattle and undulant fever in human. B. abortus strain RB51 (Strain RB51) is the official vaccine for bovine brucellosis in the USA. B. abortus strain RB51 can be used as a vector for the over-expression of its own (homologous) as well as heterologous protective antigens. The immune system can detect these heterologous antigens and produce a response. Expressing a protein in different bacterial compartments has been shown to affect its accessibility to the immune system and the way the antigen is processed by antigen presenting cells. In order to determine if the immune response is affected by the localization of the antigen, green fluorescent protein (GFP) was expressed at three different locations in B. abortus strain RB51, outer-membrane (OM), periplasmic space (PS) and in the cytoplasmic region (CR) of B. abortus strain RB51. This localization was obtained by transforming strain RB51 with plasmids pBBg18sGFP and pBBgSsGFP, in which the 18 kDa Brucella lipoprotein and the Brucella Cu/Zn SOD protein signal sequences were added to the GFP sequence to cause OM and PS expression respectively. No signal sequences were added to the plasmid pBBgGFP for CR only expression. Expression and localization of GFP in the different compartments in recombinant B. abortus strain RB51 were confirmed by electron microscopy and antibody absorption experiments. Groups of 5 female BALB/c mice each were injected and boosted with three recombinant strains and appropriate controls. Mice were bled and their anti-GFP antibody production was assessed. None of the immunized mice produced specific antibodies against GFP, probably due to the low expression of the heterologous antigen observed in this study by strain RB51 observed in this study. It will be necessary to produce new recombinants which are able to express higher amounts of GFP to answer if localization of heterologous antigen within the recombinant RB51 affects the level of a specific immune response. / Master of Science

Brucella causes undulant fever in humans and uterine and systemic infection leading to abortions in domestic animals and wild life. For the acquisition of iron in mammalian hosts, species of Brucella are known to produce two siderophores, 2, 3-dihydroxy benzoic acid (2, 3-DHBA) and brucebactin. Inability to synthesize of 2, 3-DHBA affects the ability of pathogen to metabolize erythritol, replicate in trophoblast cells and cause abortion in pregnant ruminant host. The entF gene has been implicated in the unresolved pathway allowing brucebactin biosynthesis in Brucella. The research effort presented in this thesis tries to relate the role of entF in iron acquisition and potential relation with erythritol metabolism by wild type B. abortus 2308. An entF deletion mutant (BAN1) of B. abortus 2308, generated using cre-lox methodology was found to be growth inhibited in iron minimal media compared to wild type strain. Growth inhibition was further enhanced with the addition of an iron chelator or 0.1% erythritol. Compared to wild type strain, no growth inhibition of BAN1 mutant was found in murine J774A.1 macrophages, which suggests that Brucella could acquire iron inside mammalian cells. The entF gene complemented mutant strains of BAN1 (BAN2A and BAN2B) were found to be intermediate in their ability to grow in iron minimal media supplemented with 0.0.05% erythritol, when compared to wild type and BAN1 strain. The results from the present thesis demonstrate that entF gene plays an important role in iron acquisition and erythritol metabolism by B. abortus 2308 under iron limiting conditions. / Master of Science

The gram-negative bacterial pathogen Brucella abortus is a zoonotic pathogen causing brucellosis in a variety of animal species including humans. The loss of the O-side chain in the lipopolysaccharide of the outer membrane decreases Brucella virulence. To understand the genetics of O-side chain biosynthesis and its relationship to virulence, studies were initiated to characterize specific O-side chain mutants. B. abortus rough mutant strain RA2 was derived by transposon (Tn5) mutagenesis of smooth B. abortus 2308. The chromosomal region of strain RA2 with the Tn5 and flanking chromosomal region was cloned into the sequencing vector pGEM-3Z to create a suicide plasmid pNW-2. The plasmid pNW-2, or a derivative of it (pNW-3), in which Tn5 was replaced with a Kank gene, were electroporated into wild type smooth B. abortus 2308 in order to assess the phenotypic conversion from smooth to rough. The electroporation parameters such as cell growth stage, pulse field strength and pulse length were optimized. It was determined that using late log phase cells (approximately 70-77 Klett units), 10 ms and 13 KV/cm were the best conditions for achieving transformation by pNW-2 or pNW3. Kanamycin resistant and ampicillin sensitive Brucella were screened for double reciprocal crossovers between the suicide plasmids (pNW-2 and pNW-3) and Brucella chromosomal DNA. The recombinants were checked for their O-side chain by crystal violet uptake and immunoblotting with monoclonal antibody specific for the O-side chain. The locations of Tn5 and the flanking region in the genome of these recombinants were characterized by Southern blot using either a Tn5 probe or a flanking region probe. An analysis of KanR colonies showed that none of the recombinants were rough. The B. abortus DNA in pNW-2 was sequenced and compared with other genes. No Significant homology was found between the Brucella DNA in pNW-2 and gene sequences in the gene bank. Analysis of the recombinants suggests no linkage between the Tn5 element in strain RA2 and the rough phenotype. / Master of Science

As a first step in characterizing the genes involved in O-side chain synthesis in <i>Brucella abortus</i> strain 2308, a portion of the genomic DNA was cloned from a rough mutant created by Tn5 (KnR) mutagenesis. This mutant was rough based on the lack of reactivity by either whole cells or extracted LPS to an O-side chain monoclonal antibody (BRU-38). A 30 kb <i>Xba</i>I genomic fragment (including Tn5) from the rough strain was subcloned into a sequencing vector to create pJM6. When <i>B. abortus</i> 2308 was electroporated with pJM6, KnR clones were unable to react with BRU-38; a Southern analysis of these clones revealed Tn5 in the 30 kb <i>Xba</i>I genomic fragment. Various regions of the 30kb fragment were subcloned and tested for their ability to complement specific <i>rfa</i> and <i>rfb</i> mutants of <i>Escherichia coli</i> and <i>Salmonella typhimurium</i>. One particular DNA fragment complemented an <i>rfbD</i> mutation in <i>E. coli</i> as judged by agglutination with <i>E. coli</i> anti-O (0:85) serum. The same DNA fragment failed to cause <i>E. coli rfbD</i> to react with either BRU-38 or <i>B. abortus</i> anti-O polyclonal antisera. The <i>B. abortus</i> 30 kb <i>Xba</i>I fragment contains a gene which has been identified by comple-mentation as containing the equivalent of the <i>rfbD</i> gene encoding dTDP-rhamnose synthetase in <i>E. coli</i>. Since <i>Brucella</i> is not known to have rhamnose in its core this enzyme may have a different function in <i>Brucella</i> LPS synthesis. / Master of Science

Many pathogenic bacteria can enter phagocytic cells and replicate in them, and these intracellular bacteria are difficult to treat because the recommended antibiotics do not transport into the cells efficiently. Examples include food-borne bacteria such as Salmonella and Listeria as well as more toxic bacteria such as Brucella and the Mycobacteria that lead to tuberculosis. Current treatments utilize aminoglycoside antibiotics that are polar and positively charged and such drugs do not enter the cells in sufficient concentrations to eradicate the intracellular infections. We have developed core-shell polymeric drug delivery vehicles containing gentamicin to potentially overcome this challenge. Pentablock and diblock copolymers comprised of amphiphilic nonionic polyether blocks and anionic poly(sodium acrylate) blocks have been complexed with the cationic aminoglycoside gentamicin. The electrostatic interaction between the anionic polyacrylates and the cationic aminoglycosides form the cores of the nanoplexes, while the amphiphilic nature of the polyethers stabilize their dispersion in physiological media. The amphiphilic nature of the polyethers in the outer shell aid in interaction of the nanoplexes with extra- and intra-cellular components and help to protect the electrostatic core from any physiological media. This thesis investigates the electrostatic cooperativity between the anionic polyacrylates and cationic aminoglycosides and evaluated the release rates of gentamicin as a function of pH. / Master of Science

Aerotolerance of Campylobacter jejuni ATCC 29428 and one of its aerotolerant mutants (strain MC711-01) was measured at 37°C and 42°C. The aerotolerance of C. jejuni was higher at 42°C than at 37°C. Three different lots of Gibco dehydrated Brucella broth were used to prepare Brucella agar. The agar media were then tested to see if they differed in their ability to support growth of C. jejuni. However, only slight differences in viable counts of C. jejuni were obtained between lots. Ageing of dehydrated Brucella medium for 2½ months and hydrated Brucella medium for 1½ months greatly affected the growth of C. jejuni and decreased its aerotolerance. This is probably due to the deterioration of the sodium bisulfite in Brucella medium during storage, because addition of 0.01% sodium bisulfite (the same amount as contained in the Brucella medium) to the aged medium (dehydrated or hydrated form) restored the ability of the medium to support growth of C. jejuni under various O₂ levels equivalent to or even better than that obtained with fresh Brucella medium. Moreover, when Brucella agar was prepared from the individual chemical and peptone components, only the medium containing the 0.01% bisulfite yielded colony counts of C. jejuni similar to that obtained on fresh commercial Brucella medium. When sodium bisulfite was omitted, viable counts and aerotolerance were decreased. / Master of Science

Brucella abortus and Agrobacterium tumefaciens are pathogenic bacteria that infect animals and plants, respectively. These bacteria are genetically similar and are found within the same Class, Alphaproteobacteria, and Order, Rhizobiales, of the domain Eubacteria; however, they survive and replicate in vastly different environmental niches. In Order to adapt to different environments, bacteria utilize several mechanisms of gene regulation to tightly control gene expression. Two of these mechanisms include transcriptional regulators and small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs), which can activate and repress gene expression through various interactions with DNA, mRNA, and proteins. A well-conserved transcriptional regulator among the Rhizobiales is VtlR, a virulence-associated transcriptional LysR regulator. The objectives of this dissertation were three fold: 1) characterize the known regulon of VtlR in B. abortus with regards to gene regulatory function and virulence, 2) determine the regulon of VtlR in A. tumefaciens and define the mechanism by which this regulation occurs, and 3) define the role of an ABC-type transport system indirectly regulated by VtlR in B. abortus that putatively imports the non-proteinogenic amino acid gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). VtlR was characterized in B. abortus as a virulence-associated transcriptional regulator that directly activates four genes: the sRNA AbcR2, and the three small hypothetical proteins BAB1_0914, BAB2_0512, and BAB2_0574; and deletion of vtlR led to a significant defect in the ability of B. abortus to cause infection in vitro and in vivo. Since dysregulation of abcR2 alone could not account for the defect in virulence, it was hypothesized that one or all three hypothetical proteins could be responsible for a virulence phenotype observed in ΔvtlR. This turned out to not be the case, as a deletion of the entire VtlR regulon displayed no difference in virulence compared to the parental strain. Further characterization of the small hypothetical proteins is outlined in Chapter 2 and the data revealed bona fide translation of each small protein, and the deletion strain of the VtlR regulon displayed a growth defect when grown in the presence of the sugar fucose. This phenotype was subsequently observed in ΔvtlR as well. This led to the identification of a putative fucose transport and metabolism locus in B. abortus that has yet to be studied. In A. tumefaciens, VtlR is necessary for proper attachment to plant cells and biofilm formation and regulates over 200 genes, significantly more than the four genes VtlR regulates in B. abortus. The mechanism by which this occurs was unknown, and the relationship between VtlR and AbcR1 or AbcR2 was uncharacterized. The data in Chapter 3 outline the VtlR network by showing that VtlR regulation of myriad genes in A. tumefaciens is primarily indirect via the direct regulation of a few sRNAs. This direct interaction was shown experimentally and a VtlR binding box was identified in the A. tumefaciens genome. This project outlines the divergence of a regulatory element between phylogenetically related organisms that occupy different environmental niches. The AbcR sRNAs are conserved throughout the Rhizobiales and regulate numerous ABC-type transport systems within these bacteria. In A. tumefaciens, one of these transport systems specifically transports the amino acds proline and GABA. B. abortus contains homologs of this system, which led to the hypothesis that the brucellae may also transport GABA but for a yet unknown purpose. The data in Chapter 4 revealed that B. abortus also transports GABA in vitro and this transport is under the regulation of AbcR1 and AbcR2. This transport was increased under extreme nutrient limitations and was uninhibited by the presence of other amino acids. Metabolic studies showed GABA is not utilized by B. abortus under aerobic conditions, and transcriptomic data revealed increased expression of several loci in the presence of GABA. Altogether, this study uncovers a putative signaling role for the amino acid GABA that has been understudied in bacterial pathogens that infect animal hosts. Overall, the work presented in this dissertation is focused on further elucidating the biological role of downstream regulatory targets of both VtlR and the sRNAs AbcR1 and AbcR2 in the related organisms Brucella abortus and Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Findings show that while there are similarities between the two systems, there are also many differences that may be attributed to the vastly different lifestyles of each organism. / Doctor of Philosophy / Brucella abortus and Agrobacterium tumefaciens are two highly related bacterial pathogens that infect mammals and plants, respectively. Although genetically related, both organisms survive and replicate in vastly different environmental niches with one living in the soil (i.e., A. tumefaciens) and the other living within immune cells of the infected host (i.e., B. abortus). In Order to quickly adapt to changing environmental conditions, the bacteria must rapidly control gene expression through multiple regulatory mechanisms. The works presented in this dissertation will focus on further characterizing one of these regulatory systems and comparing the homologous systems shared by B. abortus and A. tumefaciens. This includes uncovering a putative sugar transport and metabolism system, as well as discovering the potential for host-pathogen signaling via the well-studied neurotransmitter GABA.