The Importance of the Small RNA Chaperone Hfq for Growth of Epidemic Yersinia pestis, but Not Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, with Implications for Plague Biology [Molecular Biology of Pathogens]

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Bai, G., Golubov, A., Smith, E. A., McDonough, K. A.

Yersinia pestis, the etiologic agent of plague, has only recently evolved from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. hfq deletion caused severe growth restriction at 37°C in Y. pestis but not in Y. pseudotuberculosis. Strains from all epidemic plague biovars were similarly affected, implicating Hfq, and likely small RNAs (sRNAs), in the unique biology of the plague bacillus.