Streptococcus pneumoniae surface-exposed glutamyl tRNA synthetase, a putative adhesin, is able to induce a partially protective immune response in mice

Yaffa Mizrachi Nebenzahl, Anka Bernstein, Maxim Portnoi, Marilou Shagan, Slava Rom, Angel Porgador, Ron Dagan

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Scopus citations

Abstract

Glutamyl tRNA synthetase (GtS) has been found to be among the Streptococcus pneumoniae cell wall-derived proteins that have age-dependent immunogenicity in children. Here, GtS was cloned, expressed, and purified and then was used to immunize 7-week-old BALB/c OlaHsd mice. Serum obtained from mice immunized with recombinant (r) GtS cross-reacted with a 55.9-kDa protein, identified as GtS, in the cell wall fraction derived from genetically and capsularly unrelated strains of S. pneumoniae. Surface localization of GtS was further confirmed using flow cytometry analysis. The rGtS and anti-rGtS antiserum significantly inhibited the adhesion of 3 pairs of encapsulated and unencapsulated strains of S. pneumoniae to A549 cells. Thirty-nine percent of rGtS-immunized mice survived a lethal bacterial challenge, whereas no control mice survived. These results suggest that GtS, an age-dependent S. pneumoniae antigen, is a surface-located adhesin that is capable of inducing a partially protective immune response against S. pneumoniae in mice.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)945-953
Number of pages9
JournalJournal of Infectious Diseases
Volume196
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - 15 Sep 2007

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Immunology and Allergy
  • Infectious Diseases

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