Immuno-electron microscopic localization of lipopolysaccharide antigens on ultrathin sections of Salmonella typhimurium.

Lipopolysaccharide antigens were demonstrated on ultrathin sections of styrene-embedded Salmonella typhimurium by direct postembedding staining with ferritin-labeled antibodies. The antigenicity, partially masked in the embedding process, could be satisfactorily recovered by treatment of ultrathin sections with nonspecific protease. As judged from the reaction site of the ferritin-labeled antibodies, the lipopolysaccharides were localized in two zones. The broader zone of densely distributed ferritin molecules was superimposed over the whole outer cellwall, and a smaller zone revealing antigenicity was found over the cell membrane, which strongly supports the concept that the latter is the site of synthesis of lipopolysaccharides. The well-defined labeled areas between these two antigenic zones may be the routes whereby the synthesized polysaccharide molecules reach the cell wall.     

Tracheal carbohydrate antigens identified by monoclonal antibodies

In a previous study we described a family of monoclonal antibodies directed against tracheal antigens having a variety of cellular and subcellular distributions. In the present study, we have extended our findings on four representative antibodies to determine the periodate sensitivity, glycosidase sensitivity, and apparent molecular weight of the corresponding antigens. Since mild periodate oxidation selectively cleaves carbohydrate moiety leaving amino acids intact, loss of antigenicity following this treatment suggests the involvement of sugar residues in the antigenic determinant. This can be confirmed by testing the sensitivity of the antigens to specific glycosidases. By enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), all four antibodies were found to have highest affinity for void volume components isolated by Bio-Gel A15m chromatography of the total tracheal secretion. Further analysis of this void volume material by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under reducing conditions followed by immunoblot analysis revealed that all antigens were carried by high-molecular-weight species (greater than 200,000) which were periodate-Schiff positive but reacted poorly with Coomassie blue. In parallel experiments using immunofluorescence and ELISA, antibody binding was compared under control conditions and following periodate treatment of antigens under varying intensities (10 mM IO4-, 10 min, 4 degrees C; 50 mM IO4-, 1 h, 4 degrees C; 100 mM IO4-, 12 h, 20 degrees C). Similar results were obtained with the two methods, indicating a partial loss of antigenicity for one of the four antigens following the mildest periodate treatment, and total loss of antigenicity for all four antigens following each of the two prolonged treatments. All four antigens showed marked sensitivity to digestion with mixed exoglycosidases and three antigens were also susceptible to endo-beta-galactosidase digestion. Antigenicity was not decreased during incubation with chondroitinase ABC, heparitinase, or heparinase. Immunofluorescence analysis of tracheal tissue sections showed that the four antibodies recognized determinants in different locations, including gland and goblet cell cytoplasmic granules and the apical epithelial membrane. The characteristic immunofluorescence patterns of all antibodies were abolished by periodate incubation of the tracheal sections. Thus, the four antibodies appear to recognize carbohydrate antigens carried by high-molecular-weight glycoproteins, each with different cellular origins.     

An approach to postembedding staining of protein (immunoglobulin) antigen embedded in plastic: prerequisites and limitations

A method is described for performing postembedding staining of protein (immunoglobulin) antigen embedded in styrene-methacrylate resin. Fixation of specimens in a combination of 4% paraformaldehyde and 0.2% picric acid and washing in buffer containing 7% sucrose, followed by abrupt dehydration with absolute acetone in the cold preserved the antigenicity, although in a masked form. The masked antigenicity could be reexposed by treatment with nonspecific protease. Staining with fluorescent-, peroxidase-, or ferritin-labeled antibodies on semi- and ultrathin sections resulted in specific localization of the antigen. We applied this technique to the localization of rabbit immunoglobulin in specimens of renal tissue obtained from rats with anti-glomerular basement membrane nephritis; we also localized human IgG in a renal biopsy specimen. The prerequisites for recovery of antigenicity are such that preservation of tissue structure at the light microscopic level is good, but relatively poor at the electron microscopic level.     

Immunological characterization of Rhizobium leguminosarum outer membrane antigens by use of polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies.

Surface antigens of Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar viciae strain 248 were characterized by using polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies. With Western immunoblotting as the criterion, an antiserum raised against living whole cells recognized mainly flagellar antigens and the O-antigen-containing part of the lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Immunization of mice with a peptidoglycan-outer membrane complex yielded eight monoclonal antibodies, of which three reacted with LPS and five reacted with various sets of outer membrane protein antigens. The observation that individual monoclonal antibodies react with sets of related proteins is discussed. Studies of the influence of calcium deficiency and LPS alterations on surface antigenicity showed that in normally grown wild-type cells, the O-antigenic side chain of LPS blocks binding of an antibody to a deeper-lying antigen. This antigen is accessible to antibodies in cells grown under calcium limitation as well as in O-antigen-lacking mutant cells. Two of the antigen groups which can be distinguished in cell envelopes of free-living bacteria were depleted in cell envelopes of isolated bacteroids, indicating that the monoclonal antibodies could be useful tools for studying the differentiation process from free-living bacteria to bacteroids.     

Immune Responses Are Characterized by Specific Shared Immunoglobulin Peptides That Can Be Detected by Proteomic Techniques

In the adaptive immune response, immunoglobulins develop that bind specifically to the antigens to which the organism was exposed. Immunoglobulins may bind to known or unknown antigens in a variety of diseases and have been used in the past to identify novel antigens for use as a biomarker. We propose that the immunoglobulins themselves could also be used as biomarkers in antibody-mediated disease. In this proteomic study, rats were immunized with one of two purified antigens, and immunoglobulins from pre- and postimmune sera were analyzed with nano-LC coupled mass spectrometry. It was found that the two treatment groups could be distinguished based on cluster analysis of the immunoglobulin peptides from the immune sera. In addition, we identified 684 specific peptides that were differentially present in one of the two treated groups. We could find an amino acid sequence for 44% of the features in the mass spectra by combining database-driven and de novo sequencing techniques. The latter were essential for sequence identification, as the more common database-driven approach suffers from a poor representation of immunoglobulins in the available databases. Our data show that the development of immunoglobulins during an immune response is not a fully random process, but that instead selection pressures exist that favor the best binding amino acid sequences, and that this selection is shared between different animals. This finding implies that immunoglobulin peptides could indeed be a powerful and easily accessible class of biomarkers.     

Ultrastructural localization of HTLV-I gag proteins p19 and p24 by single and double immunogold labeling

We developed a post-embedding immunogold labeling procedure for the ultrastructural localization of the HTLV-I gag proteins p19 and p24 by the use of monoclonal antibodies (MAb). Both antigens were shown to withstand fixation with 1% glutaraldehyde. In addition, p19 antigenicity was found not to be affected by post-fixation with 1% osmium tetroxide. The choice of resin played a decisive role in the retention of antigenicity. P19 was preserved in Lowicryl K4M as well as in LR White, whereas p24 was preserved only in Lowicryl. Both p19 and p24 were found to be localized on the HTLV-I virions themselves, whereas no positive immunostaining could be observed on the infected cells. In Lowicryl-embedded samples, in which both antigens had been preserved, a double immunogold labeling procedure was performed that allowed the co-localization of p19 and p24 on the same section. In osmicated LR White-embedded samples the quality of ultrastructural preservation of HTLV-I virions was found to be comparable to results obtained with the traditional glutaraldehyde-osmium tetroxide-epoxy resin processing.     

Expression of a human cytomegalovirus gp58 antigenic domain fused to the hepatitis B virus nucleocapsid protein

Abstract Hepatitis B virus core antigen (HBcAg) has been used as a carrier for expression and presentation of a variety of heterologous viral epitopes in particulate form. The aim of this study was to produce hybrid antigens comprising HBcAg and an immunogenic epitope of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV). A direct comparison was made of amino and carboxyl terminal fusions in order to investigate the influence of position of the foreign epitope on hybrid core particle formation, antigenicity and immunogenicity. HCMV DNA encoding a neutralising epitope of the surface glycoprotein gp58 was either inserted at the amino terminus or fused to the truncated carboxyl terminus of HBcAg and expressed in Escherichia coli . The carboxyl terminal fusion (HBc_3–144-HCMV) was expressed at high levels and assembled into core like particles resembling native HBcAg. Protein with a similar fusion at the amino terminus (HCMV-HBc_1–183) could not be purified or characterised immunologically, although it formed core like particles. HBc_3–144-HCMV displayed HBc antigenicity but HCMV antigenicity could not be detected by radioimmunoassay or western blotting using anti-HCMV monoclonal antibody 7–17 or an anti-HCMV human polyclonal antiserum. Following immunisation of rabbits with HBc_3–144-HCMV, a high titre of anti-HBc specific antibody was produced along with lower titres of HCMV/gp58 specific antibody.     

乙肝前S2抗原决定簇串联体与核心抗原的基因融合与表达

乙肝前Ｓ２（ＨＢＶＰｒｅＳ２）肽段由５５个氨基酸组成,其Ｎ端肽段含Ｔｈ和Ｂ细胞抗原决定簇,为增强ＰｒｅＳ２的抗原性,本实验采用将化学合成的ＰｒｅＳ２ｅｐｉｔｏｐｅ（１２０－１４５）基因以串联方式与ＨＢｃＡｇ的基因进行了融合,融合基因在大肠杆菌中获得表达,并通过ＥＬＩＳＡ比较研究了融合蛋白中ＰｒｅＳ_２ｅｐｉｔｏｐｅ单体及串联体的抗原性差异。     

Molecular mapping of a histocompatibility-restricted immunodominant T cell epitope with synthetic and natural peptides: implications for T cell antigenic structure

We have prepared synthetic and natural peptides that have allowed delineation of a major antigenic site of myoglobin recognized by histocompatibility (I-Ed)-restricted T cell clones. The smallest peptide capable of stimulating T cell proliferation consisted of residues 136-146. Residues Glu 136, Lys 140, and Lys 145 were essential for antigenicity, whereas Lys 133 and Tyr 146 added potency but were not required for antigenicity. The periodicity of these residues suggests that folding the peptide into its native alpha-helical structure may be essential for antigenicity either by forming a hydrophilic binding site for the T cell receptor or by participating in antigen presentation. The same folding could also produce a hydrophobic site on the opposite side of the alpha-helix that could participate in hydrophobic interactions. The extrapolation of these findings to other known peptide antigens suggests that this tendency to form an amphipathic alpha-helix may be a general property of antigenic sites recognized by T cells, perhaps due to a different functional role of each type of site in eliciting T cell responses.     

Reaction of formaldehyde with calf-thymus nucleohistone

The reactions of formaldehyde with calf thymus nucleohistone were analyzed in the following ways: measurement with fluorescamine of the decrease in primary amino groups resulting from hydroxymethylation and crosslinking reactions, measurement with dodecylsulphate-gel electrophoresis of formation of histone oligomers, measurement of fixation of histones to the DNA in nucleohistone, and measurement of changes in the circular dichroism spectrum in the region of 250--300 nm. In the presence of formaldehyde, the primary amino groups of histones decreased very rapidly, attaining an equilibrium within 60 min, and successively intermolecular crosslinks were also formed between histone molecules, the resulting dimers and oligomers being separable by dodecylsulfate-gel electrophoresis. Whereas the fixation reaction proceeded much more slowly. The extent of fixation could be measured more accurately by dodecylsulfate/sucrose centrifugation analysis than by sulfuric acid extraction. After removal of formaldehyde from the reaction mixture, the fraction of masked amino groups decreased, perhaps due to the reverse reaction, but the extent of fixation of histones continued to increase with time. No specificity was observed among five molecular species of histones in the fixation reaction. With increase in formaldehyde concentration, the ellipticity of nucleohistone decreased to a minimum with about 0.4% formaldehyde, and then increased.     

Estimation and extraction of B-cell linear epitopes predicted by mathematical morphology approaches

B-cell epitope prediction facilitates the design and synthesis of short peptides for various immunological applications. Several algorithms have been developed to predict B-cell linear epitopes (LEs) from primary sequences of antigens, providing important information for immunobiological experiments and antibody design. This paper describes two robust methods, LE prediction with/without local peak extraction (LEP-LP and LEP-NLP), based on antigenicity scale and mathematical morphology for the prediction of B-cell LEs. Previous studies revealed that LEs could occur in regions with low-to-moderate but not globally high antigenicity scales. Hence, we developed a method adopting mathematical morphology to extract local peaks from a linear combination of the propensity scales of physico-chemical characteristics at each antigen residue. Comparison among LEP-LP/LEP-NLP, BepiPred and BEPITOPE revealed that our algorithms performed better in retrieving epitopes with low-to-moderate antigenicity and achieved comparable performance according to receiver operation characteristics (ROC) curve analysis. Of the identified LEs, over 30% were unable to be predicted by BepiPred and BEPITOPE employing an average threshold of antigenicity index or default settings. Our LEP-LP method provides a bioinformatics approach for predicting B-cell LEs with low- to-moderate antigenicity. The web-based server was established at http://biotools.cs.ntou.edu.tw/lepd_antigenicity. php for free use.     

The Antigens Associated with the Cell Walls of Members of the Genus Pseudomonas

Three antigens were associated with the cell walls of pseudomonads. A highly antigenic, strain-specific antigen of high molecular weight and protein or lipoprotein in nature, occurred as an envelope around the cells. It could be washed off the cells closely associated with carbohydrate material but its antigenicity was not dependent on the carbohydrate present. Another antigen, common to all strains tested, was situated below the first antigen. This was less antigenic than the strain-specific antigen and was polysaccharide or lipopolysaccharide in nature. A second common antigen was the mucopeptide of the cell walls. This had an antigenicity similar to that of the second antigen and was dependent on both the carbohydrate and polypeptide components of the macromolecule. There appears to be some correlation between these findings and the structure of cell walls of pseudomonads are shown by electron microscopy.     

Thermostability of Antigens Associated with Serotype of Rhizobium japonicum

The antigens associated with serologically distinct strains of Rhizobium japonicum were found to differ in heat sensitivity. Cell preparations from 4 out of 12 strains retained agglutinability, and 1 out of 5 retained antigenicity after they were heated to 120 C. Antigenicity was reduced in most strains after heating to 100 C for 30 min, but agglutinability was not affected by this treatment. This suggests that the antigens are protein-polysaccharide-lipid complexes described for O-type antigens. Cells of strain 46, however, retained both agglutinability and antigenicity after heating to 120 C for 1 hr, and thus a protein in its structure seems improbable. Antigens associated with bacteria from soybean nodules responded to heat treatment in essentially the same manner as those from the same strain grown in nutrient broth. Certain serotypes showed a tendency to agglutinate spontaneously. A heat treatment of 100 C for 30 min, to remove nodule debris and destroy certain blocking antigens, did not interfere with the agglutination reaction. Live cells induced antiserum in rabbit to a higher titer than did heat-treated cells.     

结核分枝杆菌4种抗原的基因克隆、表达、纯化和抗原性初步检测

目的:克隆38kD、ESAT-6、CFP10和MPT64等4种结核分枝杆菌抗原基因,利用大肠杆菌表达系统分别表达重组蛋白,纯化并初步评价其抗原性。方法:通过PCR方法从结核分枝杆菌H37Rv株基因组中扩增38kD、ESAT-6、CFP10和MPT64抗原的基因,连接入pBVIL1表达载体,在大肠杆菌HB101株中进行表达,以间接ELISA方法初步评价其抗原性。结果:获得了结核分枝杆菌抗原38kD、ESAT-6、CFP10和MPT64的基因,并在大肠杆菌中进行了高效表达,初步验证所纯化获得的抗原具有良好的抗原性。结论:pBVIL1表达载体可以高效表达多种结核分枝杆菌抗原,38kD、ESAT-6和CFP10抗原均可作为结核病血清学诊断的候选抗原。     

Electrophoretic mobility and immunoblot analysis of the outer membrane proteins of Aeromonas hydrophila, A. sobria and A. caviae.

The outer membrane profiles of three species of the genus Aeromonas were examined by means of SDS-PAGE and immunoblotting to identify species-specific polypeptides and antigens which could presumably be applied to differentiate Aeromonas spp. at the species or subspecies level. Profiles on an 11% discontinuous SDS-PAGE showed common band sharing at the 52 kD position. Species-specific bands for the three strains could also be detected. Immunoblots using heterologous LPS-adsorbed polyclonal antisera revealed demarcated common and uncommon antigens within the three species. Outer membrane preparations were immunoblotted against whole cell polyclonal antisera. The previously documented host pathogenicity of A. sobria correlated well with the immunoblots which showed antigenicity, especially due to the LPS, when compared with the other two species.     

Characterization of antigens of the nematode Nippostrongylus brasiliensis by monoclonal antibodies

Hybridomas secreting monoclonal antibodies to Nippostrongylus brasiliensis antigens were generated by hybridization of IR983F myeloma cells with spleen cells from Lou/M/Wol rats infected with living third-stage larvae. Antibodies specific either for larval or worm antigens were identified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays with Nippostrongylus brasiliensis fragments, homogenates and secretions as antigens. The results demonstrate that all antibodies which recognized larval antigens (38 antibodies) also reacted with worm surfaces. Ten antibodies were specific only for worm antigens. Ten antibodies reacted with worm homogenate, three antibodies recognized components of worm secretion and 17 antibodies combined with acetylcholinesterase. The epitope specificity was investigated by the capacity of various glycosides, aminoacids, N-acetylneuraminic acid and phosphorylcholine to inhibit the binding to worm fragments. The analysis revealed that alpha-methylglucoside, alpha-methylmannoside, N-acetylglucosamine, N-acetylgalactosamine, fucose and the amino acids leucine, phenylalanine, tyrosine, serine, tryptophan did not combine with the antigen-binding sites of the antibodies. Proline, arginine and histidine, however, displayed inhibitory effects. With N-acetylneuraminic acid as inhibitor three groups of antibodies could be discriminated. At a concentration of 10-20 mM, phosphorylcholine was a potent inhibitor for all antibodies.     

Importance of the COOH terminal of angiotensin in antigenicity and in the formation of an antigen-containing complex with cellular membrane structures

To more carefully determine how a peptide antigen interacts with the antigen-presenting cell (APC), we have begun an analysis of the fate of APC-associated peptide antigens. These studies have shown that a stable cell-bound form of APC-associated peptide exists, which is a complex of the peptide with surface membrane structures (peak A). In the experiments described here, we have begun to examine the chemical mechanism of this peak A complex formation. By modifying either the carboxyl terminal or amino terminal group of the octapeptide antigen angiotensin II we have established that the terminal carboxyl group, but not the terminal amino group, was critical for forming the peak A complex with APC membrane structures. In addition, blocking the carboxyl but not the amino terminal dramatically reduced the antigenicity of the peptide for AII-immune T cell in vitro proliferation. These results show that the carboxyl terminal of AII is essential for both peak A formation and antigenicity, and suggest that peak A is critical for antigen presentation to T cells.     

Use of the Mycoplasma hominis 102-116 kD proteins as antigen in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

Mycoplasma hominis surface structures involved in human immune response and in the pathogenesis of this bacterial infection are inadequately defined. Attempts have been made to identify M. hominis surface proteins, to determine the antigenicity of these polypeptides, and to examine antigens which could lead to the development of species-specific diagnostic tests. By means of Western blotting, using a pool of sera from patients with culturally proven vaginal infection, most antigens recognized were surface exposed. Among these proteins, antigens of molecular weights between 102 and 116 kD were most consistently revealed. These polypeptides were recovered by electroelution and assayed in an IgG-ELISA. The electroeluted antigen specificity was examined by ELISA and immunoblotting with different mycoplasma species. Electroeluted proteins may be effective and specific for establishing a reliable diagnosis test.     

Molecular mimicry of carbohydrate and protein structures by hybridoma antibodies

A large proportion of tumour-associated antigens seem to be determined by carbohydrate structures. Advances in the study of the antigenicity of cell-surface carbohydrates have been hampered by the absence of advanced monoclonal hybridoma technology comparable to that available for the study of protein antigens. Monoclonal antibodies have been raised against a carbohydrate epitope (43–9F) that is associated with the proliferative features of squamous lung carcinomas. These were used in turn to generate anti-idiotype antibodies with homology to 43–9F. The method and its possible applications are described, together with a procedure to detect rare cell membrane variants within large populations.     

Purification, chain separation and sequence of the MRC OX-8 antigen, a marker of rat cytotoxic T lymphocytes.

The MRC OX-8 antigen is a marker of the rat cytotoxic T lymphocytes that consists of disulphide-linked chains of mol. wts. 37 and 32 kd. It is thought to be equivalent to the human T8 and mouse Lyt2,3 antigens (all now called CD8 antigens). MRC OX-8 antigen was purified from thymocytes using a monoclonal antibody column and because antigenicity was retained after reduction and alkylation the two polypeptide chains could be separated by a subsequent affinity chromatography step. Peptides were isolated from each chain and their sequences determined. A cDNA probe coding for the mouse CD8 antigen (pLY2C-1 provided by Dr L. A. Herzenberg) was used to obtain rat cDNA clones from which the sequence of the equivalent rat molecule was determined. Peptides from the 32-kd chain were identified in this translated sequence whereas peptides from the 37-kd chain were not. The 32-kd polypeptide sequence consisted of 210 amino acids and had one possible N-linked glycosylation site. The N-terminal part of the sequence was surprisingly different from both its mouse and human counterparts but, as in the other two species, it showed a clear relationship to Ig V domains.