Antigen sequence typing of outer membrane protein (fetA) gene of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup A from Delhi & adjoining areas.

Background & objectives: Meningitis caused by Neisseria meningitidis is a fatal disease. Meningococcal meningitis is an endemic disease in Delhi and irregular pattern of outbreaks has been reported in India. All these outbreaks were associated with serogroup A. Detailed molecular characterization of N. meningitidis is required for the management of this fatal disease. In this study, we characterized antigenic diversity of surface exposed outer membrane protein (OMP) FetA antigen of N. meningitidis serogroup A isolates obtained from cases of invasive meningococcal meningitis in Delhi, India. Methods: Eight isolates of N. meningitidis were collected from cerebrospinal fluid during October 2008 to May 2011 from occasional cases of meningococcal meningitis. Seven isolates were from outbreaks of meningococcal meningitis in 2005-2006 in Delhi and its adjoining areas. These were subjected to molecular typing of fetA gene, an outer membrane protein gene. Results: All 15 N. meningitides isolates studied were serogroup A. This surface exposed porin is putatively under immune pressure. Hence as a part of molecular characterization, genotyping was carried out to find out the diversity in outer membrane protein (FetA) gene among the circulating isolates of N. meningitidis. All 15 isolates proved to be of the same existing allele type of FetA variable region (VR) when matched with global database. The allele found was F3-1 for all the isolates. Interpretation & conclusions: There was no diversity reported in the outer membrane protein FetA in the present study and hence this protein appeared to be a stable molecule. More studies on molecular characterization of FetA antigen are required from different serogroups circulating in different parts of the world.

Recent Trends of Antigenic Variation in Bordetella pertussis Isolates in Korea

Pertussis is a representative vaccine-preventable disease. However, there have been recent outbreaks in countries where even higher vaccination against the disease. One reason is the emergence of antigenic variants, which are different to vaccine type. In Korea, reported cases have rapidly increased since 2009. Therefore, we analyzed genotype of strains isolated in 2011-2012 by multilocus sequence typing method. As expected, the genotype profiles of tested genes dramatically changed. The major sequence type changed from ST1 to ST2, and new sequence type (ST8) appeared. In the minimum spanning tree, recent isolates belonging to the ACC-I-ST3 subgroup were detected that were composed of ST2, ST3, and ST6. In particular, the ST2 frequency increased to 81%. The novel ST8 was linked to the increased frequency of ST2. In addition, toxic strains carrying the ptxP3 promoter type were confirmed. This ptxP3 type emerged from 2009 and its frequency had increased to 100% in 2012. Based on these results, it can be inferred that the genotypic changes in the currently circulating strains are strongly associated with the recent increasing of pertussis in Korea. Therefore, the surveillance system should be strengthened, and genetic characterization of the isolates should be expanded to the whole genome sequence level.

Screening and Molecular Cloning of a Protective Antigen from the Midgut of Haemaphysalis longicornis

Vaccination is considered a promising alternative for controlling tick infestations. Haemaphysalis longicornis midgut proteins separated by SDS-PAGE and transferred to polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) membrane were screened for protective value against bites. The western blot demonstrated the immunogenicity of 92 kDa protein (P92). The analysis of the P92 amino acid sequence by LC-MS/MS indicated that it was a H. longicornis paramyosin (Hl-Pmy). The full lenghth cDNA of Hl-Pmy was obtained by rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) which consisted of 2,783 bp with a 161 bp 3' untranslated region. Sequence alignment of tick paramyosin (Pmy) showed that Hl-Pmy shared a high level of conservation among ticks. Comparison with the protective epitope sequence of other invertebrate Pmy, it was calculated that the protective epitope of Hl-Pmy was a peptide (LEEAEGSSETVVEMNKKRDTE) named LEE, which was close to the N-terminal of Hl-Pmy protein. The secondary structure analysis suggested that LEE had non-helical segments within an alpha-helical structure. These results provide the basis for developing a vaccine against biting H. longicornis ticks.

Comparison of predicted binders in Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus intestine protein variants BM86 Campo Grande strain, BM86 and BM95 / Comparação da previsão de ligação das variantes de proteína de intestino de Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus Bm86 cepa Campo Grande, Bm86 e Bm95

This paper reports the sequence analysis of Bm86 Campo Grande strain comparing it with Bm86 and Bm95 antigens from the preparations TickGardPLUS and GavacTM, respectively. The PCR product was cloned into pMOSBlue and sequenced. The secondary structure prediction tool PSIPRED was used to calculate alpha helices and beta strand contents of the predicted polypeptide. The hydrophobicity profile was calculated using the algorithms from the Hopp and Woods method, in addition to identification of potential MHC class-I binding regions in the antigens. Pair-wise alignment revealed that the similarity between Bm86 Campo Grande strain and Bm86 is 0.2 percent higher than that between Bm86 Campo Grande strain and Bm95 antigens. The identities were 96.5 percent and 96.3 percent respectively. Major suggestive differences in hydrophobicity were predicted among the sequences in two specific regions.

O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar a seqüência de Bm86 cepa Campo Grande comparando-a com os antígenos Bm86 e Bm95 das preparações TickGardPLUS e GavacTM, respectivamente. O produto de PCR foi clonado em PMOSBlue e seqüenciado. Para calcular os conteúdos de alfa-hélice e fita beta do polipeptídio previsto, foi utilizada a ferramenta de prognóstico de estrutura secundária PSIPRED. O perfil de hidrofobicidade foi calculado usando os algoritmos de Hopp e Woods, além da identificação das possíveis regiões de ligação com MHC classe I nos antígenos. O alinhamento "pair-wise" revelou que a similaridade entre Bm86 cepa Campo Grande e Bm86 é 0,2 por cento maior que aquela entre Bm86 cepa Campo Grande e Bm95. As identidades foram de 96,5 por cento e 96,3 por cento, respectivamente. Com relação à hidrofobicidade, os resultados sugerem que a maior diferença entre as seqüências está localizada em duas regiões específicas.

Expression of Mucin Genes in the Human Testis and Its Relationship to Spermatogenesis

In this study we investigate the expression pattern of mucin genes in the human testis and evaluate the relationship between the expression of mucin genes and impaired spermatogenesis in the human testis. Thirty human testis tissues were collected from patients undergoing diagnostic testicular biopsy to investigate the cause of infertility. One part of the tissue underwent histological observation, and the other part of the tissue was subjected to semiquantitative RT-PCR of mucin genes, that is, mucin1, 2, 3, 4, and 9. The relative amount of mucin mRNAs was calculated by densitometry using glyceraldehydes-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) as an internal control. The samples were histologically diagnosed as either obstructive azoospermia with normal spermatogenesis (n = 13) or non-obstructive azoospermia with impaired spermatogenesis (n = 17). In the human testis with normal spermatogenesis, mRNA expression of mucin1, 9, 13 and GAPDH were found, but RT-PCR products of mucin 2, 3 and 4 were not detected. In the testis with impaired spermatogenesis, however, RT-PCR product of mucin1 was not found. There was no difference in the other mucin mRNA expression patterns between the testis with either normal or impaired spermatogenesis. To our knowledge, this study is the first that has detected the mRNA of mucin9 and 13 in human testis. This study also shows that mucin1 expression might be closely related to spermatogenesis. Our findings should be substantiated by more direct evidence, such as mucin protein expression and localization.

Heterologous protein production and delivery systems for Lactococcus lactis

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB), widely used in the food industry, are present in the intestine of most animals, including humans. The potential use of these bacteria as live vehicles for the production and delivery of heterologous proteins of vaccinal, medical or technological interest has therefore been extensively investigated. Lactococcus lactis, a LAB species, is a potential candidate for the production of biologically useful proteins. Several delivery systems have been developed to target heterologous proteins to a specific cell location (i.e., cytoplasm, cell wall or extracellular medium). A promising application of L. lactis is its use as an antigen delivery vehicle, for the development of live mucosal vaccines. The expression of heterologous proteins and antigens as well as the various delivery systems developed in L. lactis, and its use as an oral vaccine carrier are discussed

Nuevas estrategias para el análisis genético y molecular del sistema Rh / New strategies for molecular and genetic analysis of Rh system

El locus RH está compuesto, en cada cromosoma de individuos RhD positivo, por dos genes estructurales, adyacentes y homólogos, denominados RHCE y RHD, que codifican las proteínas RhCcEe y RhD respectivamente, mientras que en individuos RhD negativo se encuentra únicamente el gen RHCE. La determinación de las bases moleculares asociadas con los antígenos y fenotipos de este sistema permite investigar el gran polimorfismo del locus RH. El objetivo de este trabajo es estudiar nuevas estrategias para el análisis genético y molecular del sistema Rh. Investigamos la organización genética general del locus RH en individuos pertenecientes a la población de Rosario con distintos fenotipos Rh. En muestras de ADN genómico de dadores voluntarios analizamos dos regiones diferentes del gen RHD mediante el diseño de una estrategia de PCR multiplex basado en el polimorfismo de longitud del intrón 4 y en la presencia de una secuencia específica en la región 3' no codificante del gen RHD. Los resultados obtenidos con esta estrategia molecular presentaron una estricta correlación con los hallados por métodos serológicos. Los estudios realizados en la población analizada en este trabajo indicaron que todos los individuos RhD positivo poseen los dos genes RH, mientras que las personas RhD negativo tendrían solamente el gen RHCE. Se estudiaron 15 muestras RhD positivo débil, observándose siempre el patrón de bandas característico de las muestras RhD positivo. Estos resultados permitieron descartar fenotipos RhD negativo en las muestras con aglutinación muy débil y la presencia, en estos individuos, de genes híbridos responsables del fenotipo D.

Expression of recombinant antigens in Escherichia coli: application on immunochemical studies of Schistosoma mansoni tegumental antigens

Sm15 and Sm13 are recognized by antibodies from mice protectely vaccinated with tegumental membranes, suggesting a potencial role in protective immunity. In order to raise antibodies for immunochemical investigations, the genes for these antigens were expressed in pGEX and pMAL vectors so that comparisons could be made among different expression systems and different genes. The fusion proteins corresponding to several parts of the gene for the precursor of Sm15 failed in producing antibodies recognizing the parasite counterpart. On the other hand, antibodies raised against Sm13 MBP-fusion proteins recognized the 13 kDa tegumental protein. Thus the peculiarities of the gene of interest are important and the choice of the expression system must sometimes be decided on an impirical basis.

Immunohistochemical study on antigenic phenotype of Langerhans cell histiocytosis

Immunohistochemical study on 26 cases of Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) using several leukocyte antibodies in addition to traditionally used markers (S-100 protein and peanut agglutinin) revealed that the proliferating cells of LCH expressed UCHL1, MT1 as well as classically known positivity for S-100 protein, HLA-DR and peanut agglutinin but were negative for OPD4. In comparison to S-100 protein peanut agglutinin (PNA) using a two stage method produced weaker staining and positively stained cells were sparse. Also in this study, a small proportion of proliferating cells in LCH was observed to be reactive for both myeloid/macrophage antigens (KPI, MAC 387 and lysozyme) and Langerhans cell marker (S-100 protein), verifying the existence of a hybrid form of histiocytes.

Frecuencia fenotípica y génica del antígeno kell en la región central de Cuba (Villa Clara) / Genic and phenotypic frecuency of kell antigen in the central region of Cuba (Villa Clara)

Se presenta la frecuencia fenotípica y génica del antígeno Kell en una muestra de la población de la región central Cuba que representa la primera investigación sobre el sistema sanguíneo Kell realizada en la población cubana. Sobre la base de los resultados obtenidos se determinó la fecuencia génica del alelo K1 (Kell) y de su antitético esperado K2 (CELLANO); se encontró que su distribución en los principals grupos raciales de nuestra población es heterogénea: blancos (0,030 ; 0,970), negros (0,009 ; 0,991) y mulatos (0,016 ; 0,984)