Caleosins: Ca2+-binding proteins associated with lipid bodies

We have previously identified a rice gene encoding a 27 kDa protein with a single Ca²⁺-binding EF-hand and a putative membrane anchor. We report here similar genes termed caleosins, CLO, in other plants and fungi; they comprise a multigene family of at least five members in Arabidopsis (AtClo1–5). Northern hybridization demonstrated that AtClo2–4 mRNAs levels were low in various tissues, while AtClo1 mRNA levels were high in developing embryos and mature seeds. Analysis of transgenic Arabidopsis plants expressing the GUS reporter under control of the AtClo1 promoter showed strong levels of expression in developing embryos and also in root tip cells. Antibodies raised against AtCLO1 were used to detect caleosin in cellular fractions of Arabidopsis and rapeseed. This indicated that caleosins are a novel class of lipid body proteins, which may also be associated with an ER subdomain.     

Molecular Characterization of Two Arabidopsis Ire1 Homologs, Endoplasmic Reticulum-Located Transmembrane Protein Kinases

A major response of eukaryotic cells to the presence of unfolded proteins in the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is to activate genes that encode ER-located molecular chaperones, such as the binding protein. This response, called the unfolded protein response, requires the transduction of a signal from the ER to the nucleus. In yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and mammalian cells, an ER-located transmembrane receptor protein kinase/ribonuclease called Ire1, with a sensor domain in the lumen of the ER, is the first component of this pathway. Here, we report the cloning and derived amino acid sequences of AtIre1-1 and AtIre1-2, two Arabidopsis homologs of Ire1. The two proteins are located in the perinuclear ER (based on heterologous expression of fusions with green fluorescent protein). The expression patterns of the two genes (using beta-glucuronidase fusions) are nearly nonoverlapping. We also demonstrate functional complementation of the sensor domains of the two proteins in yeast and show that the Ire1-2 protein is capable of autotransphosphorylation. These and other findings are discussed in relation to the involvement of these genes in unfolded protein response signaling in plants.     

CD40 Gene Silencing Reduces the Progression of Experimental Lupus Nephritis Modulating Local Milieu and Systemic Mechanisms

Lupus nephritis (LN) is an autoimmune disorder in which co-stimulatory signals have been involved. Here we tested a cholesterol-conjugated-anti-CD40-siRNA in dendritic cells (DC) in vitro and in a model of LPS to check its potency and tissue distribution. Then, we report the effects of Chol-siRNA in an experimental model of mice with established lupus nephritis. Our in vitro studies in DC show a 100%intracellular delivery of Chol-siRNA, with a significant reduction in CD40 after LPS stimuli. In vivo in ICR mice, the CD40-mRNA suppressive effects of our Chol-siRNA on renal tissue were remarkably sustained over a 5 days after a single preliminary dose of Chol-siRNA. The intra-peritoneal administration of Chol-siRNA to NZB/WF1 mice resulted in a reduction of anti-DNA antibody titers, and histopathological renal scores as compared to untreated animals. The higher dose of Chol-siRNA prevented the progression of proteinuria as effectively as cyclophosphamide, whereas the lower dose was as effective as CTLA4. Chol-siRNA markedly reduced insterstitialCD3+ and plasma cell infiltrates as well as glomerular deposits of IgG and C3. Circulating soluble CD40 and activated splenic lymphocyte subsets were also strikingly reduced by Chol-siRNA. Our data show the potency of our compound for the therapeutic use of anti-CD40-siRNA in human LN and other autoimmune disorders.     

Protein Array Profiling of Tic Patient Sera Reveals a Broad Range and Enhanced Immune Response against Group A Streptococcus Antigens

The human pathogen Group A Streptococcus (Streptococcus pyogenes, GAS) is widely recognized as a major cause of common pharyngitis as well as of severe invasive diseases and non-suppurative sequelae associated with the existence of GAS antigens eliciting host autoantibodies. It has been proposed that a subset of paediatric disorders characterized by tics and obsessive-compulsive symptoms would exacerbate in association with relapses of GAS-associated pharyngitis. This hypothesis is however still controversial. In the attempt to shed light on the contribution of GAS infections to the onset of neuropsychiatric or behavioral disorders affecting as many as 3% of children and adolescents, we tested the antibody response of tic patient sera to a representative panel of GAS antigens. In particular, 102 recombinant proteins were spotted on nitrocellulose-coated glass slides and probed against 61 sera collected from young patients with typical tic neuropsychiatric symptoms but with no overt GAS infection. Sera from 35 children with neither tic disorder nor overt GAS infection were also analyzed. The protein recognition patterns of these two sera groups were compared with those obtained using 239 sera from children with GAS-associated pharyngitis. This comparative analysis identified 25 antigens recognized by sera of the three patient groups and 21 antigens recognized by tic and pharyngitis sera, but poorly or not recognized by sera from children without tic. Interestingly, these antigens appeared to be, in quantitative terms, more immunogenic in tic than in pharyngitis patients. Additionally, a third group of antigens appeared to be preferentially and specifically recognized by tic sera. These findings provide the first evidence that tic patient sera exhibit immunological profiles typical of individuals who elicited a broad, specific and strong immune response against GAS. This may be relevant in the context of one of the hypothesis proposing that GAS antigen-dependent induction of autoantibodies in susceptible individuals may be involved the occurrence of tic disorders.     

Surfome Analysis as a Fast Track to Vaccine Discovery: IDENTIFICATION OF A NOVEL PROTECTIVE ANTIGEN FOR GROUP B STREPTOCOCCUS HYPERVIRULENT STRAIN COH1

Safe recombinant vaccines, based on a small number of antigenic proteins, are emerging as the most attractive, cost-effective solution against infectious diseases. In the present work, we confirmed previous data from our laboratory showing that whole viable bacterial cell treatment with proteases followed by the identification of released peptides by mass spectrometry is the method of choice for the rapid and reliable identification of vaccine candidates in Gram-positive bacteria. When applied to the Group B Streptococcus COH1 strain, 43 surface-associated proteins were identified, including all the protective antigens described in the literature as well as a new protective antigen, the cell wall-anchored protein SAN_1485 belonging to the serine-rich repeat protein family. This strategy overcomes the difficulties so far encountered in the identification of novel vaccine candidates and speeds up the entire vaccine discovery process by reducing the number of recombinant proteins to be tested in the animal model.Vaccination is the safest, most attractive, and cost-effective solution to combat infectious diseases (1). Unfortunately vaccines against several pathogens are not yet available, and this is largely because of the difficulties encountered in the identification of the few pathogen components capable of eliciting protective immune responses.Recently new genomics-based approaches have been described and shown to be very powerful for the discovery of vaccine candidates (2–4). However, these methods are labor-intensive and time-consuming in that the identification of the few protective antigens requires the screening of a large number of recombinant proteins in biological assays, which usually involve animal models. Therefore, the development of new strategies capable of substantially reducing the number of proteins to be tested would be highly desirable. Looking at the list of vaccines, either licensed or in advanced phase of development, that protect by eliciting antibody-mediated immunity, it appears that they include secreted toxins and/or highly expressed, surface-exposed molecules (5, 6). Hence the development of strategies capable of singling out this relatively small group of antigens from the plethora of pathogen components would substantially accelerate the vaccine discovery process.We have recently proposed a novel proteomics-based approach, which has allowed the identification of Group A Streptococcus (GAS)¹ proteins having domains protruding out of the bacterial surface (7). The approach is based on (i) the proteolytic treatment of bacteria under conditions that preserve cell viability and (ii) the analysis of the released peptides by mass spectrometry. The approach proved to be rapid and highly selective in that the large majority (>90%) of the identified proteins fell into the categories of cell wall proteins, lipoproteins, membrane proteins, and secreted proteins. Furthermore the method also allowed a semiquantitative evaluation of protein exposition and level of expression because, in general, the number of peptides identified from a given protein nicely correlates with the extent of its recognition by specific antibodies as judged by fluorescence-activated cell sorting analysis (7). Interestingly the list of surface-associated proteins included most of the published GAS protective antigens as well as new protective components such as the cell envelope proteinase Spy0416 (7), a protein attracting the interest of several laboratories for its important role in pathogenesis (8–10). To demonstrate that the proteomics-based approach represents a reliable and generally applicable strategy for the identification of vaccine components in Gram-positive bacteria, we have applied the same protocol to the Group B Streptococcus (GBS) for which a vaccine is not yet available on the market. GBS is a multiserotype Gram-positive opportunistic human pathogen that can lead to life-threatening infections in newborns and elderly adults (11–16).Here we show that on the surface of the hypervirulent GBS COH1 strain there are 43 major proteins belonging to the families of cell wall proteins, lipoproteins, and membrane proteins. As in the case of GAS (7), the proteins identified comprise all protective antigens so far described in the literature (6, 17,–26) as well as a new antigen, SAN_1485, which appears to be highly protective in the active maternal immunization mouse model. These data confirm the effectiveness of protease digestion coupled to mass spectrometry for the identification of surface-exposed antigens in Gram-positive bacteria and demonstrate the power of this technology for the rapid discovery of new vaccines.     

Scavenger receptor gp340 aggregates group A streptococci by binding pili

Group A streptococci (GAS) are the most frequent cause of bacterial pharyngitis. The first obstacle to GAS colonization of the pharynx is saliva. As well as forming a physical barrier, saliva contains components of innate and acquired immunity. Previous work has shown that saliva induces bacterial aggregation, which may serve as a clearance mechanism. As the aggregation of some oral streptococci in saliva is mediated by long proteinaceous appendages, we hypothesized that pili of GAS might behave similarly. Wild-type GAS M1 strain SF370 aggregated in saliva, while pilus-defective mutants did not. Similarly, heterologous expression of diverse GAS pili on the surface of Lactococcus lactis induced aggregation in saliva, while control strains were unaffected. Further studies revealed that aggregating bacteria bound salivary component gp340. Purified gp340 aggregated wild-type GAS and L. lactis expressing GAS pili, but not control strains. GAS pilus-defective mutants were abrogated in gp340 binding and aggregation. Furthermore, gp340-mediated aggregation reduced bacterial adhesion to human epithelial cells, suggesting a role in host defence.     

Epidemiology of invasive pneumococcal disease in older people in Spain (2007-2009): implications for future vaccination strategies

Background

Recently, the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) has been recommended for adults. We analyzed the epidemiology of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in older adults in Spain before PCV13 introduction.

Methodology/Principal Findings

IPD episodes, defined as clinical findings together with an invasive pneumococcal isolate, were prospectively collected from patients aged over 65 years in three hospitals in Spain from 2007 to 2009. A total of 335 IPD episodes were collected. Pneumonia was the main clinical syndrome, while chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes mellitus and cancer were the main underlying diseases. Pneumococcal isolates were serotyped and the molecular typing was performed by PFGE/MLST. PCV13 serotypes accounted for 59.3% of isolates, the most prevalent being serotypes 19A (15.1%), 3 (9.6%), 7F (7.5%), 14 (6.9%) and 1 (5.4%). The most frequent non-PCV13 serotypes were serotypes 16F (4.5%), 22F (3.6%), 24F (3.3%) and 6C (2.1%). The most common genotypes were CC230 (8.5%, serotypes 19A and 24F), CC156 (8.2%, serotypes 9V and 14), ST191 (7.9%, serotype 7F), CC260 (6.6%, serotype 3), ST306 (5.2%, serotype 1), CC30 (4.6%, serotype 16F) and ST433 (3.6%, serotype 22F). Comparing the 335 IPD isolates to 174 invasive pneumococci collected at the same hospitals in 1999–2000, PCV7 serotypes decreased (45.4% vs 18.4%,p<0.001), non-PCV7 serotypes included in PCV13 increased (26.4% vs 41.0%,p = 0.001) and two non-PCV13 serotypes increased (serotype 6C 0% vs 2.1%, p = 0.05; serotype 24F 0.6% vs 3.3%, p = 0.04,).

Conclusion

In our older adult population two serotypes (19A and 3) included in PCV13 accounted for about a quarter of IPD episodes in people ≥65 years. Non-PCV13 emerging serotypes should be carefully monitored in future surveillance studies.     

Streptococcus pyogenes pili promote pharyngeal cell adhesion and biofilm formation

Group A Streptococcus (GAS, Streptococcus pyogenes) is a Gram-positive human pathogen responsible for several acute diseases and autoimmune sequelae that account for half a million deaths worldwide every year. GAS infections require the capacity of the pathogen to adhere to host tissues and assemble in cell aggregates. Furthermore, a role for biofilms in GAS pathogenesis has recently been proposed. Here we investigated the role of GAS pili in biofilm formation. We demonstrated that GAS pilus-negative mutants, in which the genes encoding either the pilus backbone structural protein or the sortase C1 have been deleted, showed an impaired capacity to attach to a pharyngeal cell line. The same mutants were much less efficient in forming cellular aggregates in liquid culture and microcolonies on human cells. Furthermore, mutant strains were incapable of producing the typical three-dimensional layer with bacterial microcolonies embedded in a carbohydrate polymeric matrix. Complemented mutants had an adhesion and aggregation phenotype similar to the wild-type strain. Finally, in vivo expression of pili was indirectly confirmed by demonstrating that most of the sera from human patients affected by GAS-mediated pharyngitis recognized recombinant pili proteins. These data support the role of pili in GAS adherence and colonization and suggest a general role of pili in all pathogenic streptococci.