Genome sequence of Bacillus cereus FORC_021, a food-borne pathogen isolated from a knife at a sashimi restaurant

Bacillus cereus causes food-borne illness through contaminated foods; therefore, its pathogenicity and genome sequences have been analyzed in several studies. We sequenced and analyzed B. cereus strain FORC_021 isolated from a sashimi restaurant. The genome sequence consists of 5,373,294 bp with 35.36% GC contents, 5,350 predicted CDSs, 42 rRNA genes, and 107 tRNA genes. Based on in silico DNA-DNA hybridization values, B. cereus ATCC 14579T was closest to FORC_021 among the complete genome-sequenced strains. Three major enterotoxins were detected in FORC_021. Comparative genomic analysis of FORC_021 with ATCC 14579^T revealed that FORC_021 harbored an additional genomic region encoding virulence factors, such as putative ADP-ribosylating toxin, spore germination protein, internalin, and sortase. Furthermore, in vitro cytotoxicity testing showed that FORC_021 exhibited a high level of cytotoxicity toward INT-407 human epithelial cells. This genomic information of FORC_021 will help us to understand its pathogenesis and assist in managing food contamination.