Streptococcal histone induces murine macrophages To produce interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor alpha.

The histone-like protein (HlpA) is highly conserved among streptococci. After lysis of streptococci in infected tissues, HlpA can enter the bloodstream and bind to proteoglycans in the glomerular capillaries of kidneys, where it can react with antibodies or stimulate host cell receptors. Deposits of streptococcal antigens in tissues have been associated with localized acute inflammation. In this study, we measured the ability of purified HlpA (5 to 100 microg/ml), from Streptococcus mitis, to induce the production of proinflammatory cytokines by cultured, murine peritoneal macrophages. The release of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin-1 (IL-1) was time and concentration dependent and was not diminished by the presence of polymyxin B. Exposure of macrophages to a mixture of HlpA and lipoteichoic acid resulted in a synergistic response in the production of both TNF-alpha and IL-1. Stimulation with a mixture of HlpA and heparin resulted in reduced cytokine production (50% less IL-1 and 76% less TNF-alpha) compared to that by cells incubated with HlpA alone. The inclusion of antibodies specific to HlpA in macrophage cultures during stimulation with HlpA did not affect the quantity of TNF-alpha or IL-1 produced. These observations suggest that streptococcal histone may contribute to tissue injury at infection sites by promoting monocytes/macrophages to synthesize and release cytokines that initiate and exacerbate inflammation. Streptococcus pyogenes, which can infect tissues in enormous numbers, may release sufficient amounts of HlpA to reach the kidneys and cause acute poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis.

Influence of environmental conditions on hydrogen peroxide formation by Streptococcus gordonii.

Hydrogen peroxide generated by viridans group streptococci has an antagonistic effect on many bacterial species, including a number of pathogens, in the oral environment. This study examines the influence of a variety of environmental conditions on rates of hydrogen peroxide synthesis by Streptococcus gordonii. Hydrogen peroxide was synthesized at every concentration of glucose and sucrose tested from 10 microM to 1 M, with the highest rates occurring at 0.1 mM sucrose and 1 mM glucose. S. gordonii appeared to have an intracellular store of polysaccharide which supported hydrogen peroxide formation even when the assay buffer contained no carbohydrate. Most heavy metal ions inhibited peroxidogenesis, and anaerobic conditions induced adaptive down-regulation of hydrogen peroxide synthesis; however, peroxidogenesis was generally insensitive to moderate increases in salt concentration, alteration of the mineral content of the assay solution, and changes in pH between 5.0 and 7.5. In contrast, stimulation of peroxidogenesis occurred in 1 mM Mg(2+) and 10 to 50 mM potassium L-lactate. Maximum peroxidogenesis occurred during the mid-logarithmic and late-logarithmic phases of bacterial growth. These bacterial responses may have significant implications for oral ecology and oral health.

An extracellular protease of Streptococcus gordonii hydrolyzes type IV collagen and collagen analogues.

Streptococcus gordonii is a frequent cause of infective bacterial endocarditis, but its mechanisms of virulence are not well defined. In this study, streptococcal proteases were recovered from spent chemically defined medium (CDM) and fractionated by ammonium sulfate precipitation and by ion-exchange and gel filtration column chromatography. Three proteases were distinguished by their different solubilities in ammonium sulfate and their specificities for synthetic peptides. One of the enzymes cleaved collagen analogs Gly-Pro 4-methoxy-beta-naphthylamide, 2-furanacryloyl-Leu-Gly-Pro-Ala (FALGPA), and p-phenylazobenzyloxycarbonyl-Pro-Leu-Gly-Pro-Arg (pZ-peptide) and was released from the streptococci while complexed to peptidoglycan fragments. Treatment of this protease with mutanolysin reduced its 180- to 200-kDa mass to 98 kDa without loss of enzymatic activity. The purified protease cleaved bovine gelatin, human placental type IV collagen, and the Aalpha chain of fibrinogen but not albumin, fibronectin, laminin, or myosin. Enzyme activity was inhibited by phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, indicating that it is a serine-type protease. Maximum production of the 98-kDa protease occurred during growth of S. gordonii CH1 in CDM containing 0.075% total amino acids at pH 7.0 with minimal aeration. Higher initial concentrations of amino acids prevented the release of the protease without reducing cell-associated enzyme levels, and the addition of an amino acid mixture to an actively secreting culture stopped further enzyme release. The purified protease was stored frozen at -20 degreesC for several months or heated at 50 degreesC for 10 min without loss of activity. These data indicate that S. gordonii produces an extracellular gelatinase/type IV collagenase during growth in medium containing minimal concentrations of free amino acids. Thus, the extracellular enzyme is a potential virulence factor in the amino acid-stringent, thrombotic, valvular lesions of bacterial endocarditis.

Streptococcal histone-like protein: primary structure of hlpA and protein binding to lipoteichoic acid and epithelial cells.

In addition to its role in the nucleoid, the histone-like protein (HlpA) of Streptococcus pyogenes is believed to act as a fortuitous virulence factor in delayed sequelae by binding to heparan sulfate-proteoglycans in the extracellular matrix of target organs and acting as a nidus for in situ immune complex formation. To further characterize this protein, the hlpA genes were cloned from S. pyogenes, S. gordonii, S. mutans, and S. sobrinus, using PCR amplification, and sequenced. The encoded HlpA protein of S. pyogenes has 91 amino acids, a predicted molecular mass of 9,647 Da, an isoelectric point of 9.81, and 90% to 95% sequence identity with HlpA of several oral streptococci. The consensus sequence of streptococcal HlpA has 69% identity with the consensus sequence of the histone-like HB protein of Bacillus species. Oral viridans group streptococci, growing in chemically defined medium at pH 6.8, released HlpA into the milieu during stationary phase as a result of limited cell lysis. HlpA was not released by these bacteria when grown at pH 6.0 or below. S. pyogenes did not release HlpA during growth in vitro; however, analyses of sera from 155 pharyngitis patients revealed a strong correlation (P < 0.0017) between the production of antibodies to HlpA and antibodies to streptolysin O, indicating that the histone-like protein is released by group A streptococci growing in vivo. Extracellular HlpA formed soluble complexes with lipoteichoic acid in vitro and bound readily to heparan sulfate on HEp-2 cell surfaces. These results support a potential role for HlpA in the pathogenesis of streptococcus-induced tissue inflammation.

Lectin inhibition of bacterial adhesion to animal cells.

Adhesion of bacteria to epithelial cells of the respiratory, gastric, and genitourinary mucosa is generally considered to be the initial step in the pathogenesis of many bacterial infections (1). Adhesion enables the bacteria to localize near a food source and to resist being washed away by the fluids that constantly bathe mucosal surfaces Bacteria that persist at the site of attachment can proliferate and thus establish a stable colonization. If the bacteria produce the necessary exoenzymes and/or exotoxins to overcome other host defenses, they may invade deeper into the tissues and cause chmcal symptoms.

The alpha-hemolysin of Streptococcus gordonii is hydrogen peroxide.

The alpha-hemolysin of viridans group streptococci, which causes greening of intact erythrocytes, is a potential virulence factor as well as an important criterion for the laboratory identification of these bacteria; however, it has never been purified and characterized. The alpha-hemolysin of Streptococcus gordonii CH1 caused characteristic shifts in the A403, A430, A578, and A630 of sheep hemoglobin. A spectrophotometric assay was developed and used to monitor purification of alpha-hemolysin during extraction in organic solvents and separation by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The alpha-hemolysin was identical to hydrogen peroxide with respect to its effects on erythrocyte hemoglobin, oxygen-dependent synthesis by streptococci, insensitivity to proteases, inactivation by catalase, differential solubility, failure to adsorb to ion-exchange chromatography resins, and retention time on a reverse-phase HPLC column. The amount of hydrogen peroxide present in HPLC-fractionated spent culture medium was sufficient to account for all alpha-hemolytic activity observed.

Beta-adrenergic receptor regulation of macrophage-derived tumor necrosis factor-alpha production from rats with experimental arthritis.

Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and beta-adrenergic agonists can suppress lipopolysaccharide-induced tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF) production from elicited macrophages. We assessed the responsiveness of rat peritoneal macrophages to PGE2 and the beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol during immunologically-mediated arthritis. We assessed macrophage sensitivity to these mediators from resident macrophages and macrophages elicited with either streptococcal cell wall or complete Freund's adjuvant. Peritoneal macrophages were obtained from female Lewis rats that were (1) injected with complete Freund's adjuvant and non-arthritic (CFA); (2) injected with streptococcal cell wall and arthritic (ART); (3) injected with streptococcal cell wall and non-reactive (NON) and (4) non-elicited resident macrophages (RES). When challenged with graded concentrations of lipopolysaccharide (0.1 to 10,000 ng/ml), macrophages obtained from each group of rats released TNF in a concentration-dependent manner, with macrophages from arthritic rats (ART) producing the greatest amount of TNF (p < 0.001). While PGE2 suppressed lipopolysaccharide (100 ng/ml) stimulated TNF production in a concentration-dependent manner in all groups, the greatest sensitivity to PGE2 was observed with macrophages obtained from rats which received streptococcal cell wall when compared to both complete Freund's adjuvant-elicited and resident macrophages (p < 0.05). The beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol also inhibited lipopolysaccharide-stimulated TNF production from macrophages in all groups. In addition, the specific beta 2-adrenergic antagonist, ICI 118.551, shifted isoproterenol concentration-effect curves to the right (p < 0.01). Minimal responsiveness to isoproterenol was observed with resident peritoneal macrophages. Maximum isoproterenol-induced inhibition of TNF production was observed with complete Freund's adjuvant-elicited macrophages, and significantly less in macrophages of streptococcal cell wall-injected rats. Of particular interest, macrophages obtained from streptococcal cell wall-injected rats, which became arthritic, were significantly less sensitive to isoproterenol than those which did not develop arthritis (p < 0.02). In addition, these changes in sensitivity were not reflected by changes in the sensitivity of both CFA and ART groups to dibutyryl cAMP. The present study demonstrates a shift in the balance between inhibitory mediator responses in rats inoculated with one of two different adjuvants. These investigations support the role of PGE2 and a neurotransmitter as immunomodulating compounds which may effectively maintain an inflammatory lesion such as arthritis.

Dynamics of streptococcus histone retention by mouse kidneys.

To study the interaction of streptococcal histone-like protein with renal tissue, 2 groups of 12 mice were injected intravenously with either radioiodinated histone or bovine serum albumin. At intervals over 48 hr, 2 mice from each group were anesthetized and perfused with tissue culture medium and the amounts of radioactivity were measured in blood, urine, and kidneys. The streptococcal protein rapidly disappeared from the blood and accumulated in renal tissue. Kidney radioactivity was maximal at 2 hr and then declined steadily over the ensuing 46 hr. Retention of streptococcal protein in renal tissue was 2 orders higher than that of BSA throughout the experiment. Immunofluorescence staining of kidney sections showed that the histone protein was adsorbed to the basement membranes of the glomeruli and collecting tubules. There were similar rates of excretion of radioactivity in urine by the two groups of mice. Injection of preformed complexes of streptococcal histone and rabbit antibodies into a third group of mice resulted in deposits of immune complexes in glomeruli but did not change the overall rate at which the radiolabeled streptococcal protein was distributed. The accumulation of streptococcal histone in renal tissue, independently of antibodies or while contained in circulating immune complexes, makes it a potential virulence factor in the pathogenesis of poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis. Its pathogenic properties remain to be studied in an appropriate animal model.

Glucosyltransferase mediates adhesion of Streptococcus gordonii to human endothelial cells in vitro.

Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) were used as an experimental host model to investigate the mechanism(s) of streptococcal adhesion in infective endocarditis. Adhesion activity of Streptococcus gordonii was maximal during the logarithmic phase of growth and was greatly reduced or eliminated by pretreatment of bacteria with heat, formaldehyde, or trypsin. At saturating numbers of streptococci, an average of 81 bacteria were bound per HUVEC. Streptococcal adhesion was inhibited by low-molecular-weight dextran and heparin but not by sucrose, fibronectin, or laminin. Adhesion was also prevented by pretreatment of HUVEC with proteins dissociated from the surface of S. gordonii with 10 mM EDTA or isolated from spent culture medium. Western blot (immunoblot) assays detected a single adhesion protein of 153 kDa (AP153) on HUVEC after incubation with unfractionated extracts of streptococci. The adhesin exhibited glucosyltransferase (GTF) activity when incubated with sucrose and Triton X-100 after sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The AP153 was purified by affinity chromatography on dextran beads and show to have binding activity for HUVEC, GTF activity, an amino acid composition similar to that reported for GTF of S. gordonii, and the ability to inhibit S. gordonii adhesion. Incubation of the streptococci with antibodies to the adhesin inhibited bacterial attachment to HUVEC monolayers. These results indicate that surface-localized GTF mediates adhesion of S. gordonii to HUVEC in vitro and may serve as a mechanism for colonization of the endocardium in infective endocarditis.

Streptococcal M6 protein binds to fucose-containing glycoproteins on cultured human epithelial cells.

M6 protein of Streptococcus pyogenes binds directly to HEp-2 cell surfaces and helps to mediate bacterial adhesion. Two epithelial cell receptors for M protein were identified as 97- and 205-kDa glycoproteins. Purified recombinant M6 protein (rM6) showed a dose-dependent and saturable binding to isolated HEp-2 membranes in an enzyme immunoassay. The HEp-2 cell receptors were selectively denatured by pretreatment of isolated membranes at 80 degrees C or with chymotrypsin; binding activity for rM6 was reduced 83 and 80%, respectively. Pretreatment of the HEp-2 membranes with neuraminidase-N-glycosidase, neuraminidase-O-glycosidase, alpha-L-fucosidase, or Ulex lectin caused 33, 42, 73, and 80% reduction of rM6 binding, respectively. Quantitative analysis of HEp-2 cells pretreated with alpha-L-fucosidase showed that the 97- and 205-kDa glycoproteins lost 70 and 62% of their abilities to bind M6 protein and that 33% of the HEp-2 cell's ability to bind whole streptococci was also lost. These results indicated that binding of M6 protein to HEp-2 cell surfaces is highly selective for certain fucose-containing oligosaccharides on these glycoproteins.