Characterization of fimN, a new Bordetella bronchiseptica major fimbrial subunit gene.

Fimbrial proteins play an important role in the binding of Bordetella bronchiseptica to mammalian cells, an event that is key to the pathogenesis of this organism. The fimbrial phenotype of B. bronchiseptica isolates is usually defined serologically by Fim2 and Fim3 antigens. In this study, a previously unidentified fimbrial gene, fimN, was cloned and sequenced. The identity of fimN is based on several observations. The predicted FimN protein has 59.4 and 52. 2% homology with B. bronchiseptica Fim2 and Fim3, respectively, and is similar in size to these fimbriae. fimN, expressed as a recombinant protein, is recognized by mAb prepared against Fim2 from Bordetella pertussis. The fimN promoter region contains a stretch of cytosine residues similar in length to those of other fimbrial genes expressed by Bordetella species. It also has an activator binding region, upstream from the C-stretch, that closely resembles a corresponding bvg regulated region in fim2, fim3, and fimX. The fimN gene was isolated from a cosmid prepared with B. bronchiseptica genomic DNA that restored normal properties of cellular adhesion to an adhesion deficient strain of B. bronchiseptica. As such, FimN may be a previously overlooked fimbrial antigen and may play an important role in the pathogenicity of B. bronchiseptica.

Cloning and immunologic characterization of a truncated Bordetella bronchiseptica filamentous hemagglutinin fusion protein.

Filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA) is an outer-membrane associated adhesin conserved within the genus Bordetella. FHA provides protection against B. pertussis infections in humans and is a component of acellular whooping cough vaccines. Furthermore, FHA serves as a protective antigen in several animal models of infection with B. bronchiseptica and may serve as a protective antigen of canine bordetellosis. In this study, polyclonal anti-B. pertussis FHA antiserum was used to identify an immunoreactive clone from the genomic DNA library of a canine B. bronchiseptica field isolate. The nucleotide and predicted amino acid sequences of the immunoreactive clone were compared to fhaB and FhaB from B. pertussis revealing 94% identity at the nucleic acid level, and 86% identity at the protein level. A truncated fusion protein (FHAt) was prepared which included a conserved domain homologous to the immunodominant region in the FHA of B. pertussis [Leininger E, Bowen S, Renauld-Mongen G, Rouse JH, Menozzi FD, Locht C, Heron I, Brennan MJ. Immunodominant domain present on the Bordetella pertussis vaccine component filamentous hemagglutinin. J. Infect. Dis. 1997;175:1423-1431; Wilson DR, Siebers A, Finlay BB. Antigenic analysis of Bordetella pertussis filamentous hemagglutinin with phage display libraries and rabbit anti-filamentous hemagglutinin polyclonal antibodies. Infect. Immun. 1998;66:4884-4894]. FHAt was shown to be safe and antigenic in rabbits. FHAt induced the formation of antibodies that inhibit the hemagglutination associated with full length B. pertussis FHA, and inhibit adherence of B. bronchisepitca to canine fibroblasts by as much as 65%. This information may have implications for the development of safe and efficacious subunit vaccines for the prevention of canine bordetellosis and may contribute to future acellular whooping cough vaccines.

A natural variant of the cysteine protease virulence factor of group A Streptococcus with an arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) motif preferentially binds human integrins alphavbeta3 and alphaIIbbeta3.

The human pathogenic bacterium group A Streptococcus produces an extracellular cysteine protease [streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxin B (SpeB)] that is a critical virulence factor for invasive disease episodes. Sequence analysis of the speB gene from 200 group A Streptococcus isolates collected worldwide identified three main mature SpeB (mSpeB) variants. One of these variants (mSpeB2) contains an Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) sequence, a tripeptide motif that is commonly recognized by integrin receptors. mSpeB2 is made by all isolates of the unusually virulent serotype M1 and several other geographically widespread clones that frequently cause invasive infections. Only the mSpeB2 variant bound to transfected cells expressing integrin alphavbeta3 (also known as the vitronectin receptor) or alphaIIbbeta3 (platelet glycoprotein IIb-IIIa), and binding was blocked by a mAb that recognizes the streptococcal protease RGD motif region. In addition, mSpeB2 bound purified platelet integrin alphaIIbbeta3. Defined beta3 mutants that are altered for fibrinogen binding were defective for SpeB binding. Synthetic peptides with the mSpeB2 RGD motif, but not the RSD sequence present in other mSpeB variants, blocked binding of mSpeB2 to transfected cells expressing alphavbeta3 and caused detachment of cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells. The results (i) identify a Gram-positive virulence factor that directly binds integrins, (ii) identify naturally occurring variants of a documented Gram-positive virulence factor with biomedically relevant differences in their interactions with host cells, and (iii) add to the theme that subtle natural variation in microbial virulence factor structure alters the character of host-pathogen interactions.

Genetic inactivation of the extracellular cysteine protease enhances in vitro internalization of group A streptococci by human epithelial and endothelial cells.

Group A Streptococcus (GAS) produces an extracellular cysteine protease (streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxin B) that participates in virulence. We examined two pairs of isogenic GAS strains (serotype M2 and M3) for ability to be internalized by human umbilical vein endothelial cells and A549 human lung fibroblasts. For both host cell types, the level of internalization by the cysteine protease-negative mutant strains was significantly greater than the wild type parent organisms. The data suggest that expression of the cysteine protease contributes to extracellular survival, an observation consistent with recent results from mouse infection studies (Lukomski et al., Infect immun 1998; 66: 771-6).

Genetic inactivation of an extracellular cysteine protease (SpeB) expressed by Streptococcus pyogenes decreases resistance to phagocytosis and dissemination to organs.

Streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxin B (SpeB), a conserved cysteine protease expressed by virtually all Streptococcus pyogenes strains, has recently been shown to be an important virulence factor (S. Lukomski, S. Sreevatsan, C. Amberg, W. Reichardt, M. Woischnik, A. Podbielski, and J. M. Musser, J. Clin. Invest. 99:2574-2580, 1997). Genetic inactivation of SpeB significantly decreased the lethality of a serotype M49 strain for mice and abolished the lethality of a serotype M3 strain after intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection. In the present study, a wild-type M3 isolate and an M3 speB mutant derivative were used to investigate the mechanism responsible for altered virulence. Following i.p. injection, the mutant and wild-type strains induced virtually identical cellular inflammatory responses, characterized largely by an influx of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs). In addition, the mutant and wild-type strains rapidly entered the blood and were recovered from all organs examined. However, significantly fewer (P < 0.05) CFUs of the isogenic mutant derivative than of the wild-type parent strain were recovered from blood and organs. PMNs effectively cleared the M3 speB mutant from the peritoneum by 22 h, thereby sparing the host. In contrast, the wild-type M3 strain continued to replicate intraperitoneally and had the ability to kill phagocytes. This process allowed the wild-type strain to continuously disseminate, resulting in host death. Our results indicate that genetic inactivation of the cysteine protease decreased the resistance of the mutant to phagocytosis and impaired its subsequent dissemination to organs. These results provide insight into the detrimental effect of SpeB inactivation on virulence.

Structure-function and pathogenesis studies of Streptococcus pyogenes extracellular cysteine protease.

Replacement of the single cysteine residue (C192) with serine in the Streptococcus pyogenes extracellular cysteine protease (SCP) prevented auto-catalytic processing of the 40-kDa zymogen to the 28-kDa mature form and eliminated proteolytic activity. SCP incubated with human endothelial cells induced a time- and concentration-dependent increase in a 66-kDa gelatinase/type IV collagenase in culture supernatants. Activation of this gelatinase/collagenase may contribute to endothelial cell damage, tissue destruction, and hemodynamic derangement observed in some patients with severe, invasive S. pyogenes infection.

Activation of a 66-kilodalton human endothelial cell matrix metalloprotease by Streptococcus pyogenes extracellular cysteine protease.

Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were used to gain insight into the molecular mechanism whereby the major extracellular protease from group A streptococci damages host tissue. HUVECs exposed to streptococcal cysteine protease (SCP) for various times exhibited cytopathic effect and cell detachment from the culture vessel. Gelatin substrate zymography showed that a time- and concentration-dependent increase in the level of activity of an approximately 66-kDa gelatinase occurred in culture medium taken from cells exposed to enzymatically active SCP. This gelatinase comigrated in gelatin zymograms with the activated form of purified recombinant matrix metalloprotease 2 (MMP-2) and had type IV collagenase activity. In contrast, medium taken from cells exposed to inactivated (boiled) SCP and cells exposed to SCP inhibited by treatment with N-benzyloxycarbonyl-leucyl-valyl-glycine diazomethyl ketone lacked the 66-kDa gelatinase. Appearance of the 66-kDa gelatinase activity was also prevented by 1,10-phenanthroline, a zinc chelator and MMP inhibitor. Inasmuch as proteolytically active SCP is required for the emergence of this gelatinase and MMP activation occurs by proteolytic processing, the 66-kDa gelatinase may be a proteolytic cleavage product of a latent MMP expressed extracellularly by HUVECs. Direct SCP treatment of culture supernatant taken from HUVECs not exposed to SCP also produced the 66-kDa gelatinase. The data show that SCP activates an MMP produced by human endothelial cells, a process that may contribute to endothelial cell damage, tissue destruction, and hemodynamic derangement observed in some patients with severe, invasive group A streptococcal infection.

Fimbriae and determination of host species specificity of Bordetella bronchiseptica.

A monoclonal antibody, designated CF8 and prepared against fimbrial protein enrichments of Bordetella bronchiseptica 110H, was determined by immunogold electron microscopy to bind to some but not all fimbrial filaments on intact bacterial cells. Comparison of the reactivity of this antibody with that of monoclonal antibody BPF2, which is specific for Bordetella pertussis serotype 2 fimbriae, indicated that CF8 recognizes an epitope similar to that recognized by BPF2. By Western blot (immunoblot), it was determined that monoclonal antibody CF8 does not react with proteins denatured by treatment with sodium dodecyl sulfate and beta-mercaptoethanol and by boiling for 5 min but that it does recognize fimbrial proteins in their native, nondenatured state. This antibody was used to compare fimbriae between strains of B. bronchiseptica isolated from different species. Strains from pigs, dogs, guinea pigs, and four other species were compared by an enzyme immunoassay. Strains isolated from pigs were found to express significantly more CF8-reactive and B. pertussis serotype 2 cross-reactive fimbriae than strains isolated from guinea pigs. Strains from dogs were more variable in reactivity than those from pigs or guinea pigs. The reactivity with antifimbrial monoclonal antibody CF8 did not correlate with enzyme electromorphotype but did correlate with the host species, suggesting a role for fimbriae in the determination of host species specificity of B. bronchiseptica.