Efficacy of cellular vaccines and genetic adjuvants against bacterial kidney disease in chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)

DNA adjuvants and whole bacterial cell vaccines against bacterial kidney disease (BKD) were tested in juvenile chinook salmon. Whole cell vaccines of either a nonpathogenic Arthrobacter spp. or an attenuated Renibacterium salmoninarum strain provided limited prophylactic protection against acute intraperitoneal challenge with virulent R. salmoninarum, and the addition of either synthetic oligodeoxynucleotides or purified R. salmoninarum genomic DNA as adjuvants did not increase protection. However, a combination of both whole cell vaccines significantly increased survival among fish naturally infected with R. salmoninarum, and the surviving fish treated with the combination vaccine exhibited reduced levels of bacterial antigens in the kidney. This is the first demonstration of a potential therapeutic effect of a whole cell vaccine against BKD.     

Detection of Renibacterium salmoninarum antigen in migrating adult chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) in Japan.

Renibacterium salmoninarum antigen was detected in the kidney of migrating chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) using the indirect dot blot assay and indirect fluorescent antibody test. The adult chum salmon had migrated into a bay in which cultured coho salmon infected with R. salmoninarum were present. Antigen was detected in 5% of the chum salmon although they did not have clinical signs of bacterial kidney disease (BKD). This report describes the first case of R. salmoninarum antigen detection among wild chum salmon populations in eastern Asia.     

Elevated temperature treatment as a novel method for decreasing p57 on the cell surface of Renibacterium salmoninarum.

Renibacterium salmoninarum is a Gram-positive diplo-bacillus and the causative agent of bacterial kidney disease, a prevalent disease of salmonid fish. Virulent isolates of R. salmoninarum have a hydrophobic cell surface and express the 57-58 kDa protein (p57). Here we have investigated parameters which effect cell hydrophobicity and p57 degradation. Incubation of R. salmoninarum cells at 37 degrees C for > 4 h decreased cell surface hydrophobicity as measured by the salt aggregation assay, and decreased the amount of cell associated p57. Incubation of cells at lower temperatures (22, 17, 4 or -20 degrees C) for up to 16 h did not reduce hydrophobicity or the amount of cell associated p57. Both the loss of cell surface hydrophobicity and the degradation of p57 were inhibited by pre-incubation with the serine protease inhibitor phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF). Cell surface hydrophobicity was specifically reconstituted by incubation with extracellular protein (ECP) concentrated from culture supernatant and was correlated with the reassociation of p57 onto the bacterial cell surface as determined by western blot and total protein stain analyses. The ability of p57 to reassociate suggests that the bacterial cell surface is not irreversibly modified by the 37 degrees C treatment and that p57 contributes to the hydrophobic nature of R. salmoninarum. In summary, we describe parameters effecting the removal of the p57 virulence factor and suggest the utility of this modification for generating a whole cell vaccine against bacterial kidney disease.     

Expression of duplicate msa genes in the salmonid pathogen Renibacterium salmoninarum

Renibacterium salmoninarum is a gram-positive bacterium responsible for bacterial kidney disease of salmon and trout. R. salmoninarum has two identical copies of the gene encoding major soluble antigen (MSA), an immunodominant, extracellular protein. To determine whether one or both copies of msa are expressed, reporter plasmids encoding a fusion of MSA and green fluorescent protein controlled by 0.6 kb of promoter region from msa1 or msa2 were constructed and introduced into R. salmoninarum. Single copies of the reporter plasmids integrated into the chromosome by homologous recombination. Expression of mRNA and protein from the integrated plasmids was detected, and transformed cells were fluorescent, demonstrating that both msa1 and msa2 are expressed under in vitro conditions. This is the first report of successful transformation and homologous recombination in R. salmoninarum.     

First record of Renibacterium salmoninarum in the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus)

Bacterial kidney disease (BKD), caused by Renibacterium salmoninarum, is a widespread problem with major implications for salmonid fish species. The mechanisms by which the bacterium has reached high levels of infection previously unrecorded in the Laurentian Great Lakes are presently unknown. Research involving reservoirs and mechanisms of R. salmoninarum transmission in fish is lacking because of the ecologic complexity of heterogeneous habitats and the lack of adequate funding. Herein, we report on the isolation of R. salmoninarum from the kidneys of the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus). The bacterium was cultured from kidneys of 16% and 4% of lampreys collected from two locations within the Lake Ontario watershed in 2003 and 2004, respectively. The identity of bacterial colonies was verified with the nested polymerase chain reaction and quantitative enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.     

Zygosity at the major histocompatibility class IIB locus predicts susceptibility to Renibacterium salmoninarum in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.)

Major histocompatibility (MH) class II genes play an important role in the vertebrate immune response. Here, we investigate the relationship between Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) MH class IIB zygosity and susceptibility to Renibacterium salmoninarum, the causal agent of bacterial kidney disease. By combining DNA sequences from the salmon MH class IIB gene with quantitative ELISA data on R. salmoninarum antigen levels, we found that MH class IIB homozygotes were significantly more susceptible to R. salmoninarum than heterozygotes. These findings are discussed in the context of current evolutionary theory.     

Sortase inhibitor phenyl vinyl sulfone inhibits Renibacterium salmoninarum adherence and invasion of host cells

Renibacterium salmoninarum, the causative agent of bacterial kidney disease in salmonid fishes, is a Gram-positive diplococcobacillus belonging to the family Micrococcaceae. Analysis of the genome sequence of the bacterium demonstrated the presence of a sortase homolog (srtD), a gene specifying an enzyme found in Gram-positive bacteria and required for covalent anchoring of cell surface proteins. Interference of sortase activity is being examined as a target for therapeutic prevention of infection by several pathogenic Gram-positive bacterial species. In silico analysis identified 8 open reading frames containing sortase recognition motifs, suggesting these proteins are translocated to the bacterial cell wall. The sortase and potential sortase substrate genes are transcribed in R. salmoninarum, suggesting they encode functional proteins. Treatment of R. salmoninarum with phenyl vinyl sulfone (PVS) significantly reduced bacterial adherence to Chinook salmon fibronectin. In addition, the ability of the PVS-treated bacteria to adhere to Chinook salmon embryo cells (CHSE-214) in vitro was dramatically reduced compared to that of untreated bacteria. More importantly, PVS-treated bacteria were unable to invade and replicate within CHSE-214 cells (demonstrated by an intracellular growth assay and by light microscopy). When treated with PVS, R. salmoninarum was not cytopathic to CHSE-214 cells, whereas untreated bacteria produced cytopathology within a few days. These findings clearly show that PVS, a small molecule drug and a known sortase inhibitor, can interfere with the ability of R. salmoninarum to adhere and colonize fish cells, with a corresponding decrease in virulence.     

Charcoal agar, a new growth medium for the fish disease bacterium Renibacterium salmoninarum

Charcoal is an effective replacement for serum in media for the isolation and culture of Renibacterium salmoninarum, the causative agent of bacterial kidney disease in salmonid fish. The medium, KDM-C, contains 10 g of peptone, 0.5 g of yeast extract, 1 g of L-cysteine hydrochloride, 1 g of activated charcoal, and 15 g of agar per liter and is adjusted to pH 6.8 with NaOH before autoclaving. Eight strains of R. salmoninarum grew from dilute inocula as well on KDM-C as on a standard serum-containing medium (KDM-2). The medium was effective for both primary isolations from fish and repeated transfers and has potential value for antigen preparation and physiological studies.     

Charcoal agar, a new growth medium for the fish disease bacterium Renibacterium salmoninarum.

Charcoal is an effective replacement for serum in media for the isolation and culture of Renibacterium salmoninarum, the causative agent of bacterial kidney disease in salmonid fish. The medium, KDM-C, contains 10 g of peptone, 0.5 g of yeast extract, 1 g of L-cysteine hydrochloride, 1 g of activated charcoal, and 15 g of agar per liter and is adjusted to pH 6.8 with NaOH before autoclaving. Eight strains of R. salmoninarum grew from dilute inocula as well on KDM-C as on a standard serum-containing medium (KDM-2). The medium was effective for both primary isolations from fish and repeated transfers and has potential value for antigen preparation and physiological studies.     

A cohabitation challenge to compare the efficacies of vaccines for bacterial kidney disease (BKD) in chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

The relative efficacies of 1 commercial and 5 experimental vaccines for bacterial kidney disease (BKD) were compared through a cohabitation waterborne challenge. Groups of juvenile chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha were vaccinated with one of the following: (1) killed Renibacterium salmoninarum ATCC 33209 (Rs 33209) cells; (2) killed Rs 33209 cells which had been heated to 37 degrees C for 48 h, a process that destroys the p57 protein; (3) killed R. salmoninarum MT239 (Rs MT239) cells; (4) heated Rs MT239 cells; (5) a recombinant version of the p57 protein (r-p57) emulsified in Freund's incomplete adjuvant (FIA); (6) the commercial BKD vaccine Renogen; (7) phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) emulsified with an equal volume of FIA; or (8) PBS alone. Following injection, each fish was marked with a subcutaneous fluorescent latex tag denoting its treatment group and the vaccinated fish were combined into sham and disease challenge tanks. Two weeks after these fish were vaccinated, separate groups of fish were injected with either PBS or live R. salmoninarum GL64 and were placed inside coated-wire mesh cylinders (liveboxes) in the sham and disease challenge tanks, respectively. Mortalities in both tanks were recorded for 285 d. Any mortalities among the livebox fish were replaced with an appropriate cohort (infected with R. salmoninarum or healthy) fish. None of the bacterins evaluated in this study induced protective immunity against the R. salmoninarum shed from the infected livebox fish. The percentage survival within the test groups in the R. salmoninarum challenge tank ranged from 59% (heated Rs MT239 bacterin) to 81% (PBS emulsified with FIA). There were no differences in the percentage survival among the PBS-, PBS/FIA-, r-p57- and Renogen-injected groups. There also were no differences in survival among the bacterin groups, regardless of whether the bacterial cells had been heated or left untreated prior to injection.     

Characterization of attenuated Renibacterium salmoninarum strains and their use as live vaccines

Two nutritionally mutant strains of Renibacterium salmoninarum (Rs) were isolated that grew on tryticase soy agar (Rs TSA1) or brain heart infusion agar (Rs BHI1). These 2 strains could be continuously cultured on these media, whereas typical R. salmoninarum would only grow on KDM-2 agar. We determined no other phenotypic difference that could be used to distinguish them from wild-type R. salmoninarum. Both strains were found to be avirulent when 5 x 10(6) bacteria were intraperitoneally (i.p.) injected into Atlantic salmon. Rs TSA1, Rs BHI1, and Rs MT-239 (a R. salmoninarum strain previously shown to be attenuated) were tested as live vaccines in 2 separate trials. The best protection was seen with Rs TSA1. Vaccinated Atlantic salmon had relative percent survival (RPS) of 50 at 74 d post-challenge in Trial 1 and 76 at 60 d post-challenge in Trial 2. In both trials, 100% of the control salmon died from bacterial kidney disease (BKD) (within 40 d for Trial 1 and 50 d for Trial 2) after i.p. challenge with 5 x 10(6) live cells of the virulent isolate Rs Margaree.     

A single Ala139-to-Glu substitution in the Renibacterium salmoninarum virulence-associated protein p57 results in antigenic variation and is associated with enhanced p57 binding to chinook salmon leukocytes

The gram-positive bacterium Renibacterium salmoninarum produces relatively large amounts of a 57-kDa protein (p57) implicated in the pathogenesis of salmonid bacterial kidney disease. Antigenic variation in p57 was identified by using monoclonal antibody 4C11, which exhibited severely decreased binding to R. salmoninarum strain 684 p57 and bound robustly to the p57 proteins of seven other R. salmoninarum strains. This difference in binding was not due to alterations in p57 synthesis, secretion, or bacterial cell association. The molecular basis of the 4C11 epitope loss was determined by amplifying and sequencing the two identical genes encoding p57, msa1 and msa2. The 5' and coding sequences of the 684 msa1 and msa2 genes were identical to those of the ATCC 33209 msa1 and msa2 genes except for a single C-to-A nucleotide mutation. This mutation was identified in both the msa1 and msa2 genes of strain 684 and resulted in an Ala(139)-to-Glu substitution in the amino-terminal region of p57. We examined whether this mutation in p57 altered salmonid leukocyte and rabbit erythrocyte binding activities. R. salmoninarum strain 684 extracellular protein exhibited a twofold increase in agglutinating activity for chinook salmon leukocytes and rabbit erythrocytes compared to the activity of the ATCC 33209 extracellular protein. A specific and quantitative p57 binding assay confirmed the increased binding activity of 684 p57. Monoclonal antibody 4C11 blocked the agglutinating activity of the ATCC 33209 extracellular protein but not the agglutinating activity of the 684 extracellular protein. These results indicate that the Ala139-to-Glu substitution altered immune recognition and was associated with enhanced biological activity of R. salmoninarum 684 p57.     

Detection of Renibacterium salmoninarum by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for the detection and identification of Renibacterium salmoninarum. The immune γ-globulin used in the assay was absorbed with two species of cross-reacting bacteria to make a specific test system. R. salmoninarum could be detected in clinically-diseased fish within 30 minutes of preparing a kidney sample, and thus because of its ease of use, the ELISA could be employed as a rapid field test for bacterial kidney disease (BKD), although isolation of R. salmoninarum was more sensitive than the ELISA for detecting individual carrier fish.     

Identification of a third msa gene in Renibacterium salmoninarum and the associated virulence phenotype

Renibacterium salmoninarum, a gram-positive diplococcobacillus, causes bacterial kidney disease, a condition that can result in extensive morbidity and mortality among stocks of fish. An immunodominant extracellular protein, called major soluble antigen (MSA), is encoded by two identical genes, msa1 and msa2. We found evidence for a third msa gene, msa3, which appears to be a duplication of msa1. Unlike msa1 and msa2, msa3 is not present in all isolates of R. salmoninarum. The presence of the msa3 locus does not affect total MSA production in culture conditions. In a challenge study, isolates possessing the msa3 locus reduced median survival in juvenile chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) by an average of 34% at doses of < or =10(5) cells per fish compared to isolates lacking the msa3 locus. In contrast, no difference in survival was observed at the highest dose, 10(6) cells per fish. The phenotype associated with the msa3 locus and its nonuniform distribution may contribute to observed differences in virulence among R. salmoninarum isolates.     

Evaluation of a whole cell, p57- vaccine against Renibacterium salmoninarum.

A whole cell Renibacterium salmoninarum vaccine was developed using 37 degrees C heat treated cells that were subsequently formalin fixed; this treatment reduced bacterial hydrophobicity and cell associated p57. Coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch were immunized with the p57- vaccine by either a combination of intraperitoneal (i.p.) and intramuscular (i.m.) injections or per os. In the first experiment, i.p./i.m. vaccination of coho salmon with p57- cells in Freund's Incomplete Adjuvant (FIA) conferred a statistically significant increase in mean time to death after the salmon were i.p. challenged with 4.1 x 10(6) colony forming units (cfu) of R. salmoninarum. There was no significant difference in response between fish immunized with R. salmoninarum cell surface extract in FIA and those immunized with extracellular protein (ECP) concentrated from culture supernatant in FIA. The i.p. challenge dose resulted in complete mortality of all fish by Day 43. In a second experiment, fish were orally vaccinated with p57- R. salmoninarum cells encased in a pH protected, enteric-coated antigen microsphere (ECAM). Fish were bath challenged with 4.2 x 10(6) cfu ml-1 on Day 0 and sampled at time points of 0 (pre-challenge), 50, 90, or 150 d immersion challenge. Vaccine efficacy was determined by monitoring the elaboration of p57 in the kidneys of vaccinated and control fish. Fish vaccinated orally demonstrated a significantly lower concentration of p57 (p < 0.01) at Day 150 post challenge compared to fish receiving ECAMs alone. Fish receiving p57 cells without ECAM coating also showed a significantly lower p57 level (p < 0.03) versus control. In contrast, fish injected intraperitoneally with the p57- cells or fish fed p57+ R. salmoninarum cells in ECAMs demonstrated no significant difference (p > 0.05) versus controls. In summary, these studies suggest the preliminary efficacy of 37 degrees C treatment of R. salmoninarum cells as an oral bacterial kidney disease vaccine.     

A simplified PCR-based method for the detection of Renibacterium salmoninarum utilizing preparations of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss, Walbaum) lymphocytes.

A method for the detection of Renibacterium salmoninarum by PCR is described. A rapid, reliable procedure was developed for the extraction of DNA, which could be applied to infected kidney homogenates and head kidney lymphocyte preparations. The target for DNA amplification was a 376-bp region of the gene encoding the 57-kDa major surface antigen (MSA). The PCR was specific for R. salmoninarum and allowed the detection of 10 to 100 cells of the pathogen. Use of the PCR for the examination of experimentally infected rainbow trout showed it to be as reliable as plate culture methods for the detection of R. salmoninarum in infected kidneys.     

Comparison and evaluation of Renibacterium salmoninarum quantitative PCR diagnostic assays using field samples of Chinook and coho salmon

Renibacterium salmoninarum is a Gram-positive bacterium causing bacterial kidney disease (BKD) in susceptible salmonid fishes. Several quantitative PCR (qPCR) assays to measure R. salmoninarum infection intensity have been reported, but comparison and evaluation of these assays has been limited. Here, we compared 3 qPCR primer/probe sets for detection of R. salmoninarum in field samples of naturally exposed Chinook and coho salmon first identified as positive by nested PCR (nPCR). Additional samples from a hatchery population of Chinook salmon with BKD were included to serve as strong positive controls. The 3 qPCR assays targeted either the multiple copy major soluble antigen (msa) genes or the single copy abc gene. The msa/non-fluorescent quencher (NFQ) assay amplified R. salmoninarum DNA in 53.2% of the nPCR positive samples, whereas the abc/NFQ assay amplified 21.8% of the samples and the abc/TAMRA assay 18.2%. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) successfully quantified only 16.4% of the nPCR positive samples. Although the msa/NFQ assay amplified a greater proportion of nPCR positive samples, the abc/NFQ assay better amplified those samples with medium and high ELISA values. A comparison of the geometric mean quantity ratios highlighted limitations of the assays, and the abc/NFQ assay strongly amplified some samples that were negative in other tests, in contrast to its performance among the sample group as a whole. These data demonstrate that both the msa/NFQ and abc/NFQ qPCR assays are specific and effective at higher infection levels and outperform the ELISA. However, most pathogen studies will continue to require multiple assays to both detect and quantify R. salmoninarum infection.