Definition of virulence gene in US English:
virulence gene
nounˈvir(y)ələns ˌjēnˈvir(y)ələns ˌjēn
A gene whose presence or activity in an organism's genome is responsible for the pathogenicity of an infective agent.
Example sentencesExamples
- Diphtheria is likely not the only case of a harmless organism becoming ‘pathogenic because of virulence genes brought by a prophage or plasmid.’
- This breaks a long-standing assumption among scientists that disabling a potential virulence gene weakens a pathogen.
- However, inhibitors of these virulence gene products may be used in combination with existing drugs to improve the regime of chemotherapy 31.
- It provides a mechanism for regulating virulence genes with respect to the density of members of their own species and, in some cases, of other species.
- Our preliminary observation suggests the presence of a new virulence gene in K. pneumoniae which is responsible for causing diarrhoea in children.