Table 1.
A selection of pathogenic bacterial, fungal and viral strains and their virulence traits.
| Pathogen | Pathogenic trait |
|---|---|
| Bacterial Pathogens | |
| Bacillus anthracis | Human pathogen; causative agent of anthrax; toxin producer |
| Bacillus subtilis | Putative human pathogen: causative agent of food poisoning |
| Brucella abortus | Human and animal pathogen; causative agent of brucellosis |
| Campylobacter spp. and C. jejuni | Human pathogen; causative agent of campylobacteriosis |
| Clostridium botulinum | Human pathogen; producer of neurotoxins and causative agent of botulism |
| Escherichia coli O157:H7 | Human pathogen; causative agent of foodborne illness and producer of toxins, such as verocytoxin or ‘shiga-like’ toxin |
| Francisella tularensis | Animal pathogen; putative biohazard |
| Legionella pneumophila | Human pathogen; causative agent of Legionnaires disease (legionellosis) |
| Listeria monocytogenes | Human pathogen; causative agent of listeriosis |
| Mycobacterium tuberculosis | Human pathogen; causative agent of tuberculosis |
| Neisseria meningitidis | Human pathogen; causative agent of bacterial meningitis |
| Salmonella typhimurium | Human pathogen; causative agent of salmonellosis |
| Staphylococcus aureus | Human pathogen; causative agent of hospital-acquired infection, toxin producer |
| Yersinia enterocolitica | Human pathogen; causative agent of yersiniosis |
| Yersinia pestis | Human pathogen; potential causative agent of the black plague |
| Fungal pathogens | |
| Candida albicans | Human pathogen; causative agent of vaginal thrush |
| Puccinia striiformis | Plant pathogen; causative agent of stripe rust |
| Phytophthora infestans | Plant pathogen; causative agent of potato blight |
| Trichophyton rubrum | Human pathogen; causative agent of athlete's foot and ringworm |
| Viral pathogens | |
| African swine fever virus | Animal pathogen; causative agent of African swine fever |
| Bovine diarrhoea virus | Animal pathogen; causative agent of mucosal erosion and bovine diarrhoea |
| Cowpea mosaic virus | Plant pathogen; causes mosaic pattern, vein yellowing and leaf malformation |
| Ebola virus | Human pathogen; causative agent of severe haemorrhagic fever disease |
| Foot and mouth virus | Animal pathogen; causative agent of acute degenerative disease in cattle |
| Hepatitis C virus | Human pathogen; causative agent of blood-borne infectious disease |
| Human immunodeficiency virus | Human pathogen; causative agent of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) |
| Rift valley fever virus | Animal pathogen; causative agent of Rift valley fever |
| SARS-associated coronavirus | Human and animal pathogen; causative agent of severe acute respiratory syndrome |
| Tobacco mosaic virus | Plant virus; causes mottling and discolouration of leaves |
| West Nile virus | Human and animal virus; causative agent of West Nile fever and encephalitis |