Fig. 2

Exoproteome of closely related isolates. Pairs A/B, C/D and E/F, respectively, were compared. Comparative pseudo-colored images of exoprotein expression between the closely related isolates of each pair is illustrated at the right. Both images were superimposed by PDQuest Advanced 8.0.1 2D Gel Analysis software (Bio-Rad, Hercules, CA). Protein spots whose intensity did not vary between closely related strains are indicated in yellow; green or red spots represent the exoproteome of closely related strains that were very heterogeneous. Exoprotein spot patterns varied in each comparison. In particular, a high level of heterogeneity in exoprotein expression can be seen in isolates of clone ST1 harboring the same virulence gene combination (c, d). The similarity between spot patterns was only as high as (approximately) 50 % even when both isolates had the same clonal lineage. Arrows indicate abundant spots corresponding to the absence of any significantly differentially expressed proteins. a, b Exoprotein expression by clones of genotype ST30, c, d exoprotein expression by clones of genotype ST1, e, f, exoprotein expression by clones of genotype ST8. Only one of the three technical replicates is shown