scholarly journals Characterization of an Outer Membrane Protein of Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium That Confers Protection against Typhoid

2008 ◽  
Vol 15 (9) ◽  
pp. 1461-1471 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nowsheen Hamid ◽  
S. K. Jain

ABSTRACT Typhoid caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi remains a major health concern worldwide. The emergence of multidrug-resistant strains of Salmonella with increased virulence, communicability, and survivability leading to increased morbidity and mortality has further complicated its management. Currently available vaccines for typhoid have less-than-desired efficacy and certain unacceptable side effects, making it pertinent to search for new immunogens suitable for vaccine formulation. The outer membrane proteins (OMPs) of Salmonella have been considered possible candidates for conferring protection against typhoid. OMPs interface the cell with the environment, thus representing important virulence factors with a significant role in the pathobiology of gram-negative bacteria and bacterial adaptation. An OMP of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium with an apparent molecular mass of 49 kDa that is highly immunogenic, evokes humoral and cell-mediated immune responses, and confers 100% protection to immunized rats against challenge with very high doses (up to 100 times the 50% lethal dose) of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium has been identified. Further, very efficient clearance of bacteria from the reticuloendothelial systems of immunized animals was seen. This protein is recognized by the antibodies present in serum of typhoid patients. When sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis gel-eluted protein was further analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and two-dimensional electrophoresis, two polypeptides with the same molecular weight were resolved. These have different isoelectric points and gave two peaks with different retention times in reverse-phase HPLC. However, only one of the two bands interacted with patient serum. The immunogenicity studies (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and delayed-type hypersensitivity [DTH]) indicated that the immunoreactive protein evoked a strong immune response in rats. The N-terminal sequencing and analysis of the homology of this protein with sequences in the protein database of Salmonella resulted in a match with the N-terminal sequences of a protein in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (CT18 and Ty2 strains). The homology search further revealed it to be a hypothetical protein, whose gene had unidentified open reading frames in Salmonella serovar Typhi encoding 447 amino acid residues, corresponding to a molecular mass of 49 kDa. The nucleotide sequence of the encoding gene was deduced, and the gene was amplified by PCR using appropriate primers. An amplified 1.3-kb band was purified and sequenced to confirm its identity. These OMPs provide promising targets for the development of a candidate vaccine against typhoid.

2009 ◽  
Vol 77 (12) ◽  
pp. 5572-5582 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qingke Kong ◽  
Qing Liu ◽  
Kenneth L. Roland ◽  
Roy Curtiss

ABSTRACT RfaH is a transcriptional antiterminator that reduces the polarity of long operons encoding secreted and surface-associated cell components of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, including O antigen and lipopolysaccharide core sugars. A ΔrfaH mutant strain is attenuated in mice (50% lethal dose [LD50], >108 CFU). To examine the potential for using rfaH in conjunction with other attenuating mutations, we designed a series of strains in which we replaced the native rfaH promoter with the tightly regulated arabinose-dependent araC PBAD promoter so that rfaH expression was dependent on exogenously supplied arabinose provided during in vitro growth. Following colonization of host lymphoid tissues, where arabinose was not available, the PBAD promoter was no longer active and rfaH was not expressed. In the absence of RfaH, O antigen and core sugars were not synthesized. We constructed three mutant strains that expressed different levels of RfaH by altering the ribosome-binding sequence and start codon. One mutation, ΔPrfaH178, was introduced into the attenuated vaccine strain χ9241 (ΔpabA ΔpabB ΔasdA) expressing the pneumococcal surface protein PspA from an Asd+ balanced-lethal plasmid. Mice immunized with this strain and boosted 4 weeks later induced higher levels of serum immunoglobulin G specific for PspA and for outer membrane proteins from other enteric bacteria than either an isogenic ΔrfaH derivative or the isogenic RfaH+ parent. Eight weeks after primary oral immunization, mice were challenged with 200 LD50 of virulent S treptococcus pneumoniae WU2. Immunization with ΔPrfaH178 mutant strains led to increased levels of protection compared to that of the parent χ9241 and of a ΔrfaH derivative of χ9241.


2010 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. 887-894 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maneesha Muralinath ◽  
Meta J. Kuehn ◽  
Kenneth L. Roland ◽  
Roy Curtiss

ABSTRACTGram-negative bacteria produce outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) that serve a variety of functions related to survival and pathogenicity. Periplasmic and outer membrane proteins are naturally captured during vesicle formation. This property has been exploited as a method to derive immunogenic vesicle preparations for use as vaccines. In this work, we constructed aSalmonella entericaserovar Typhimurium strain that synthesized a derivative of the pneumococcal protein PspA engineered to be secreted into the periplasmic space. Vesicles isolated from this strain contained PspA in the lumen. Mice intranasally immunized with the vesicle preparation developed serum antibody responses against vesicle components that included PspA andSalmonella-derived lipopolysaccharide and outer membrane proteins, while no detectable responses developed in mice immunized with an equivalent dose of purified PspA. Mucosal IgA responses developed against theSalmonellacomponents, while the response to PspA was less apparent in most mice. Mice immunized with the vesicle preparation were completely protected against a 10× 50% lethal dose (LD50) challenge ofStreptococcus pneumoniaeand significantly protected against a 200× LD50challenge, while control mice immunized with purified PspA or empty vesicles were not protected. These results establish that vesicles can be used to mucosally deliver an antigen from a Gram-positive organism and induce a protective immune response.


2000 ◽  
Vol 44 (5) ◽  
pp. 1223-1228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Etienne Giraud ◽  
Axel Cloeckaert ◽  
Dominique Kerboeuf ◽  
Elisabeth Chaslus-Dancla

ABSTRACT The occurrence of active efflux and cell wall modifications were studied in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium mutants that were selected with enrofloxacin and whose phenotypes of resistance to fluoroquinolones could not be explained only by mutations in the genes coding for gyrase or topoisomerase IV. Mutant BN18/21 exhibited a decreased susceptibility to ciprofloxacin (MIC = 0.125 μg/ml) but did not have a mutation in the gyrA gene. Mutants BN18/41 and BN18/71 had the same substitution, Gly81Cys in GyrA, but exhibited different levels of resistance to ciprofloxacin (MICs = 2 and 8 μg/ml, respectively). None of the mutants had mutations in the parC gene. Evidence for active efflux was provided by a classical fluorimetric method, which revealed a three- to fourfold decrease in ciprofloxacin accumulation in the three mutants compared to that in the parent strain, which was annuled by addition of the efflux pump inhibitor carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone. In mutant BN18/71, a second fluorimetric method also showed a 50% reduction in the level of accumulation of ethidium bromide, a known efflux pump substrate. Immunoblotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay experiments with an anti-AcrA antibody revealed that the resistance phenotype was strongly correlated with the expression level of the AcrAB efflux pump and suggested that decreased susceptibility to ciprofloxacin due to active efflux probably related to overproduction of this pump could occur before that due to gyrA mutations. Alterations were also found in the outer membrane protein and lipopolysaccharide profiles of the mutants, and these alterations were possibly responsible for the decrease in the permeability of the outer membrane that was observed in the mutants and that could act synergistically with active efflux to decrease the level of ciprofloxacin accumulation.


2003 ◽  
Vol 71 (7) ◽  
pp. 3937-3946 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shiva P. Singh ◽  
Yvonne U. Williams ◽  
Stephanie Miller ◽  
Hiroshi Nikaido

ABSTRACT We examined the way the major outer membrane protein OmpA of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium is recognized by the mouse immune system, by raising a panel of 12 monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against this protein. Interaction between OmpA and these MAbs is competitively inhibited with several-hundredfold dilutions of mouse polyclonal sera obtained by immunization with live or heat-killed whole cells, suggesting that OmpA is one of the immunodominant antigens of serovar Typhimurium. All of the MAbs were specific for an identical epitope(s) located on the C-terminal domain of OmpA, as indicated by the use of OmpA fragments generated by protease or cyanogen bromide treatment and by competitive inhibition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. This epitope was highly conserved within (but not outside) the family Enterobacteriaceae. The strong immunogenicity of this epitope was surprising because the C-terminal domain of OmpA, usually thought to be located in the periplasm, is not expected to be exposed on the bacterial cell surface. A MAb, however, reacted in a cytofluorometry assay more strongly with outer-membrane-permeabilized cells than with untreated cells, a result supporting the predominantly periplasmic localization of the epitope. Significant, though low-level, reactivity of intact cells nevertheless suggests that in some cells the C-terminal domain of OmpA is exposed on the surface, a result consistent with the proposal that OmpA can fold into one of the two alternate conformations.


2003 ◽  
Vol 71 (12) ◽  
pp. 6953-6961 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Rabsch ◽  
U. Methner ◽  
W. Voigt ◽  
H. Tschäpe ◽  
R. Reissbrodt ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Single, double, and triple mutants of an enterobactin-deficient mutant strain of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium were constructed that were defective in the expression of the iron-regulated outer membrane proteins (IROMPs) FepA, IroN, and Cir, which are proposed to function as catecholate receptors. Uptake of naturally occurring and chemically synthesized catecholate molecules by these mutants was assessed in standard growth promotion assays. Unique patterns of uptake were identified for each IROMP; specifically, FepA and IroN were confirmed to be required for transport of enterobactin, and all three proteins were shown to function as receptors for the enterobactin breakdown product 2,3-dihydroxybenzoylserine. The fepA, iroN, and cir alleles were transduced to enterobactin-proficient strains of S. enterica serovar Typhimurium and S. enterica serovar Enteritidis, and the resulting phenotypes were confirmed by analysis of outer membrane protein profiles, by sensitivity to KP-736, a catecholate-cephalosporin conjugate, and by growth promotion tests on egg white agar. Intragastric infections of mice with the S. enterica serovar Typhimurium strains indicated that the parental strain and the fepA iroN double mutant were similarly virulent but that the fepA iroN cir triple mutant was significantly attenuated. Moreover, in mixed infections, the fepA iroN mutant showed similar cecal colonization and invasion of the liver to the parental strain, while the triple mutant showed significantly reduced cecal colonization and no measurable spread to the liver. Infections of 4-day-old chicks with S. enterica serovar Enteritidis strains also indicated that mutation of the fepA iroN genes did not significantly reduce cecal colonization and systemic spread compared with those of the parental strain. The results indicate that, while enterobactin uptake is not essential for the virulence of S. enterica serovars in mouse and chicken infection models, the ability to take up 2,3-dihydroxybenzoylserine via any of the three catecholate siderophore receptors appears to play an important role, since the S. enterica serovar Typhimurium triple mutant was significantly attenuated in the mouse model. Salmochelins appear not to be involved in the virulence of S. enterica.


2012 ◽  
Vol 80 (9) ◽  
pp. 3215-3224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qingke Kong ◽  
David A. Six ◽  
Qing Liu ◽  
Lillian Gu ◽  
Shifeng Wang ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTLipid A is a key component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria and stimulates proinflammatory responses via the Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)-MD2-CD14 pathway. Its endotoxic activity depends on the number and length of acyl chains and its phosphorylation state. InSalmonella entericaserovar Typhimurium, removal of the secondary laurate or myristate chain in lipid A results in bacterial attenuation and growth defectsin vitro. However, the roles of the two lipid A phosphate groups in bacterial virulence and immunogenicity remain unknown. Here, we used anS. TyphimuriummsbB pagL pagP lpxRmutant, carrying penta-acylated lipid A, as the parent strain to construct a series of mutants synthesizing 1-dephosphorylated, 4′-dephosphorylated, or nonphosphorylated penta-acylated lipid A. Dephosphorylated mutants exhibited increased sensitivity to deoxycholate and showed increased resistance to polymyxin B. Removal of both phosphate groups severely attenuated the mutants when administered orally to BALB/c mice, but the mutants colonized the lymphatic tissues and were sufficiently immunogenic to protect the host from challenge with wild-typeS. Typhimurium. Mice receivingS. Typhimurium with 1-dephosphorylated or nonphosphorylated penta-acylated lipid A exhibited reduced levels of cytokines. Attenuated and dephosphorylatedSalmonellavaccines were able to induce adaptive immunity against heterologous (PspA ofStreptococcus pneumoniae) and homologous antigens (lipopolysaccharide [LPS] and outer membrane proteins [OMPs]).


Microbiology ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 152 (5) ◽  
pp. 1347-1359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henrieta Skovierova ◽  
Gary Rowley ◽  
Bronislava Rezuchova ◽  
Dagmar Homerova ◽  
Claire Lewis ◽  
...  

The extracytoplasmic function sigma factor, σ E, has been shown to play a critical role in virulence of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium). The previously optimized two-plasmid system has been used to identify S. Typhimurium promoters recognized by RNA polymerase containing σ E. This method allowed identification of 34 σ E-dependent promoters that direct expression of 62 genes in S. Typhimurium, 23 of which (including several specific for S. Typhimurium) have not been identified previously to be dependent upon σ E in Escherichia coli. The promoters were confirmed in S. Typhimurium and transcriptional start points of the promoters were determined by S1-nuclease mapping. All the promoters contained sequences highly similar to the consensus sequence of σ E-dependent promoters. The identified genes belonging to the S. Typhimurium σ E-regulon encode proteins involved in primary metabolism, DNA repair systems and outer-membrane biogenesis, and regulatory proteins, periplasmic proteases and folding factors, proposed lipoproteins, and inner- and outer-membrane proteins with unknown functions. Several of these σ E-dependent genes have been shown to play a role in virulence of S. Typhimurium.


2000 ◽  
Vol 182 (14) ◽  
pp. 4077-4086 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tina Guina ◽  
Eugene C. Yi ◽  
Houle Wang ◽  
Murray Hackett ◽  
Samuel I. Miller

ABSTRACT The outer membrane protein contents of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium strains with PhoP/PhoQ regulon mutations were compared by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. At least 26 species of outer membrane proteins (OMPs) were identified as being regulated by PhoP/PhoQ activation. One PhoP/PhoQ-activated OMP was identified by semiautomated tandem mass spectrometry coupled with electronic database searching as PgtE, a member of theEscherichia coli OmpT and Yersinia pestis Pla family of outer membrane proteases. Salmonella PgtE expression promoted resistance to alpha-helical cationic antimicrobial peptides (α-CAMPs). Strains expressing PgtE cleaved C18G, an 18-residue α-CAMP present in culture medium, indicating that protease activity is likely to be the mechanism of OmpT-mediated resistance to α-CAMPs. PhoP/PhoQ did not regulate the transcription or export of PgtE, indicating that another PhoP/PhoQ-dependent mechanism is required for PgtE outer membrane localization. PgtE is a posttranscriptionally regulated component of the PhoP/PhoQ regulon that contributes toSalmonella resistance to innate immunity.


2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (9) ◽  
pp. 3955-3958 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wensi S. Hu ◽  
Pei-Chuan Li ◽  
Chao-Yin Cheng

ABSTRACT Mutant 7F2 of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium has a transposon inserted in the regulator gene baeR of a two-component system and showed a more-than-fourfold reduction in resistance to ceftriaxone. Complementation analysis suggested an association among the outer membrane proteins OmpW and STM3031, ceftriaxone resistance, and baeR.


2012 ◽  
Vol 80 (7) ◽  
pp. 2454-2463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen J. Forbes ◽  
Daniel Martinelli ◽  
Chyongere Hsieh ◽  
Jeffrey G. Ault ◽  
Michael Marko ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTInvasion of intestinal epithelial cells bySalmonella entericaserovar Typhimurium is an energetically demanding process, involving the transfer of effector proteins from invading bacteria into host cells via a specialized organelle known as theSalmonellapathogenicity island 1 (SPI-1) type 3 secretion system (T3SS). By a mechanism that remains poorly understood, entry ofS. Typhimurium into epithelial cells is inhibited by Sal4, a monoclonal, polymeric IgA antibody that binds an immunodominant epitope within the O-antigen (O-Ag) component of lipopolysaccharide. In this study, we investigated how the binding of Sal4 to the surface ofS. Typhimurium influences T3SS activity, bacterial energetics, and outer membrane integrity. We found that Sal4 treatment impaired T3SS-mediated translocon formation and attenuated the delivery of tagged effector proteins into epithelial cells. Sal4 treatment coincided with a partial reduction in membrane energetics and intracellular ATP levels, possibly explaining the impairment in T3SS activity. Sal4's effects on bacterial secretion and energetics occurred concurrently with an increase in O-Ag levels in culture supernatants, alterations in outer membrane permeability, and changes in surface ultrastructure, as revealed by transmission electron microscopy and cryo-electron microscopy. We propose that Sal4, by virtue of its ability to bind and cross-link the O-Ag, induces a form of outer membrane stress that compromises the integrity of theS. Typhimurium cell envelope and temporarily renders the bacterium avirulent.


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