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Clinical Microbiology Reviews, Jan 1997, 35-66, Vol 10, No. 1
RD Perry and JD Fetherston
Plague is a widespread zoonotic disease that is caused by Yersinia pestis
and has had devastating effects on the human population throughout history.
Disappearance of the disease is unlikely due to the wide range of mammalian
hosts and their attendant fleas. The flea/rodent life cycle of Y. pestis, a
gram-negative obligate pathogen, exposes it to very different environmental
conditions and has resulted in some novel traits facilitating transmission
and infection. Studies characterizing virulence determinants of Y. pestis
have identified novel mechanisms for overcoming host defenses. Regulatory
systems controlling the expression of some of these virulence factors have
proven quite complex. These areas of research have provide new insights
into the host-parasite relationship. This review will update our present
understanding of the history, etiology, epidemiology, clinical aspects, and
public health issues of plague.
Copyright © 1997 by the American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Yersinia pestis--etiologic agent of plague
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Kentucky, Lexington 40536, USA. rperry@pop.uky.edu
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