Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax, is a considerable global health threat affecting wildlife, livestock, and the general public. In this study, whole‐genome sequence analysis of over 350 B. anthracis isolates was used to establish a new high‐resolution global genotyping framework that is both biogeographically informative and compatible with multiple genomic assays. The data presented in this study shed new light on the diverse global dissemination of this species and indicate that many lineages may be uniquely suited to the geographic regions in which they are found. In addition, we demonstrate that plasmid genomic structure for this species is largely consistent with chromosomal population structure, suggesting vertical inheritance in this bacterium has contributed to its evolutionary persistence. This classification methodology is the first based on population genomic structure for this species and has potential use for local and broader institutions seeking to understand both disease outbreak origins and recent introductions. In addition, we provide access to a newly developed genotyping script as well as the full whole‐genome sequence analyses output for this study, allowing future studies to rapidly employ and append their data in the context of this global collection. This framework may act as a powerful tool for public health agencies, wildlife disease laboratories, and researchers seeking to utilize and expand this classification scheme for further investigations into B. anthracis evolution.

中文翻译：

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由全局基因组结构定义的炭疽杆菌分类框架。


炭疽杆菌是炭疽病的病原体，对全球健康构成严重威胁，影响野生动物、牲畜和公众。在这项研究中，对超过 350 个炭疽芽孢杆菌分离株进行全基因组序列分析，建立了一个新的高分辨率全局基因分型框架，该框架既具有生物地理信息，又与多种基因组分析兼容。这项研究中提供的数据为该物种在全球的多样化传播提供了新的线索，并表明许多谱系可能特别适合它们发现的地理区域。此外，我们证明该物种的质粒基因组结构与染色体群体结构在很大程度上一致，这表明该细菌的垂直遗传有助于其进化的持久性。这种分类方法是第一个基于该物种种群基因组结构的分类方法，对于寻求了解疾病爆发起源和最近传入的当地和更广泛的机构具有潜在的用途。此外，我们还提供新开发的基因分型脚本以及本研究的完整全基因组序列分析输出，使未来的研究能够在全球收集的背景下快速使用和附加其数据。该框架可以作为公共卫生机构、野生动物疾病实验室和寻求利用和扩展该分类方案以进一步研究炭疽芽孢杆菌进化的研究人员的强大工具。