Haemophilus somnus

The Haemophilus somnus sequencing project is a collaboration between Dr. Thomas Inzana, Ph.D. at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and Dr. David Dyer, Ph.D. of the Laboratory for Genomics and Bioinformatics.

The H. somnus strain 2336 selected for sequencing, which was isolated from a calf with pneumonia and was provided by Dr. Lynette Corbeil, is host specific for bovines and possibly ovines, and is responsible for a wide variety of systemic diseases. This project is funded by USDA/CSREES grant #2001-52100-11314.

 

 Data access

Download contigs from the finished Haemophilus somnus assembly

BLAST against Haemophilus somnus contigs

Sequal - Generate a graph of Phrap quality vs. base position.

 

 Figures 2-4

Figure 2. Charolais bull with thrombotic meningoencephalitis (TME). This multi-systemic disease is more common in animals in feedlots, and is characterized by sudden onset and marked pyrexia. Affected animals may be severely depressed with salivation, drooping ears and eyelids. Death may follow in a few hours.	Figure 3. Pneumonia may occur in the absence of other clinical diseases or in conjunction with TME. H. somnus may cause pneumonia as a single entity or in combination with Pasteurella bacteria (shipping fever). The lungs of this animal demonstrate suppurative bronchopneumonia with severe cranioventral hemorrhage and consolidation.	Figure 4. Postmortem view of the brain of a bovine with TME. Note congestion of the gray matter, with cerebral hemorrhages, and meningitis.

 

 Figure 1

Figure 1. Electron micrograph of Haemophilus somnus, a gram-negative coccobacillus of the family Pasteurellaceae. Although H. somnus does not form a true capsule, under particular growth conditions it does shed an exopolysaccharide (slime layer).