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Co-infection with infectious spleen and kidney necrosis virus (ISKNV) and Aeromonas hydrophila is becoming ever more widespread in Chinese perch ( Siniperca chuatsi ) aquaculture industry, so that it’s necessary to develop the combined vaccine against ISKNV and A . hydrophila disease. The surface display of heterologous on bacteria using anchoring motifs from outer membranes proteins has already been explored as an effective delivery system of viral antigens. In present study, the ISKNV orf 086 gene, which is verified as a protective antigen, was inserted into omp A gene cassette of A . hydrophila GYK1 strain by homologous recombination. And an omp A- orf 086 fusion A . hydrophila mutant strain K28 was constructed. Then the ISKNV orf086 was verified to express on the surface of A . hydrophila K28 by RT-PCR, western blot and indirect immunofluorescence assay. Next, Chinese perch were intraperitoneally inoculated with formalin inactivated A . hydrophila k28 emulsified with ISA763 adjuvant with a dose of 9 × 10 8 CFU per fish. Transcriptional analysis of non-specific and specific immune related genes revealed that the expression levels of IRF-7, IRAK1, Mx, Viperin, Lysozyme and IgM were strongly up-regulated in Chinese perch post-inoculation. In addition, specific antibodies were detected by ELISA, and the results showed that antibody titer against ISKNV or A . hydrophila reached the highest with 1:800 or 1:1200 on 14dpv, respectively. Lymphocyte proliferation were detected by MTT methods, and the results showed that the SI values of AH-K28 vaccinated group to three different stimulators were significantly higher than those of control group. At last, protective efficacy were determined by challenge trials. The cumulative mortality rates of vaccinated groups were significantly lower than the control one (P < 0.05) after ISKNV or A . hydrophila challenge, and the relative percentage survival (RPS) value was 73.3% and 60%, respectively. This system provides a novel approach to the surface display of heterologous antigenic proteins on A . hydrophila and suggests the possibility to use the recombinant K28 strain as a combined vaccine against ISKNV and A . hydrophila infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biosurfactants have emerged as a remarkable strategy for microbial enhanced oil recovery (MEOR) due to their amphipatic nature, superficial activity and low toxicity. On one hand, conventional biosurfactants for MEOR belong to the rhamnolipids group, which are surface-active compounds of glycolipid-type. On the other hand, transmembrane proteins have been studied in recent years and have shown good surface tension reduction potential. This work aimed to evaluate and compare the emulsification index (EI), oil displacement ability (ODA) and additional oil recovery (AOR) percentages of rhamnolipids produced by a native isolate Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain Pa4 and OmpA produced by Escherichia coli . The results confirmed a high recovery potential for both of the biosurfactants with the best superficial activity for P. aeruginosa rhamnolipid mixture (EI of 95% and ODA of 59.94 cm 2 ) and the highest recovery for OmpA, obtaining an AOR of 12%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compared conventional ompA genotyping of Chlamydia trachomatis with multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and multilocus typing (MLT) DNA microarray. DNA extracts of 104 C. trachomatis positive specimens were analyzed by ompA sequencing and MLST and of these 76 by MLT array. Obtained MLST sequence types (STs) were compared to sequences in the database http://mlstdb.uu.se . The resolution obtained for MLST (35 STs) was 2.1 higher than for ompA sequencing (17 variants) and 1.3 higher than MLT array (27 MLT groups). Among the 104 samples the predominant genotype E could be divided into 5 ompA variants and 23 STs of which 16 had not been reported in previous studies. The most common STs, ST3 and ST56, were identified as founders and are common in several countries on a global scale. The MLST and the MLT array provided similar strain discrimination capacity and showed considerably higher resolution than conventional ompA sequencing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of secreted recombinant proteins from E. coli is pivotal to the biotechnological industry because it reduces the cost of downstream processing. Proteins destined for secretion contain an N-terminal signal peptide that is cleaved by secretion machinery in the plasma membrane. The resulting protein is released in an active mature form. In this study, Bacillus subtilis chitosanase (Csn) was used as a model protein to compare the effect of two signal peptides on the secretion of heterologous recombinant protein. The results showed that the E. coli secretion machinery could recognize both native bacillus and E. coli signal peptides. However, only the native bacillus signal peptide could generate the same N-terminal sequence as in the wild type bacteria. When the recombinant Csn constructs contained the E. coli OmpA signal peptide, the secreted enzymes were heterogeneous, comprising a mixed population of secreted enzymes with different N-terminal sequences. Nevertheless, the E. coli OmpA signal peptide was found to be more efficient for high expression and secretion of bacillus Csn. These findings may be used to help engineer other recombinant proteins for secretory production in E. coli. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The usefulness of Salmonella vaccine vehicles is limited by the fact that control programmes relying on Salmonella bacteriology and serology cannot differentiate infected animals from vaccinated ones, an ability referred to as DIVA (differentiating infected from vaccinated animals). As a first step towards Salmonella -based DIVA vaccines, the ompA gene was deleted in live attenuated Δ phoP and Δ rpoS vaccine strains. The ompA gene is present in all Salmonella enterica serovars and it encodes an abundant, highly immunogenic outer membrane protein. The double mutant Δ phoP Δ ompA and Δ rpoS Δ ompA strains showed similar virulence attenuation, safety and immunogenicity in a mouse model of infection as the parental Δ phoP and Δ rpoS strains. Sera from mice inoculated with the double mutant strains failed to recognise OmpA in Western blots of outer membrane extracts, whereas the protein was recognised by sera from mice inoculated with wild-type Salmonella or a mixture of double mutant and parental strains. These data suggest that OmpA can be a suitable negative marker for DIVA vaccines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research efforts have focused on the production of environmentally nonthreatening products, including identifying biosurfactants that can replace conventional surfactants. In order to utilize biosurfactants in different industries such as cosmetic, food or petroleum, it is necessary to understand the underpinnings behind the interactions that could take place for biosurfactants which display potential for interface activity. This work aimed to use molecular dynamics simulations to understand the interactions of rationally obtained peptide sequences from the original sequence of the OmpA gene in Escherichia coli , based on the free energy change (ΔG) during peptide insertion at the water–dodecane interface. Seventeen OmpA–based peptide sequences were selected and analyzed based on their hydropathy index profiles. We found that free energy change due to Columbic interactions and SASA (ΔG Coul/SASA ), total free energy change and MW (ΔG /MW ) , and free energy change due to Coulombic and van der Waals interactions (ΔG Coul/ ΔG vdW ) ratios could provide a better understating in the contribution of the free energy decrease at the interface. The results indicated that the peptide sequences GKNHDTGVSPVFA and THENQLGAGAFG display biosurfactant potential based on low ΔG per square nanometer, high ΔG Coul /ΔG vdW ratio, clearly defined moieties along its hydrophobic surface and sequence, and the presence of charged residues in the polar head. Clearly defined moieties and SASA were determinant for electrostatic interactions between oil–water interfaces. Experimental validations exhibited that the emulsions prepared remained stable between 3 and 27 h, respectively. Even though the peptide GKNHDTGVSPVFA displays strong interactions at the interface, stabilization times showed that the peptide THENQLGAGAFG exhibited the best performance suggesting that the stability can be better described by kinetic rather than thermodynamic criteria once the emulsion is formed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bordetellosis, caused by Bordetella avium , continues to be an economic problem in the poultry industry of China. Vaccines with good protective ability are lacking. Thus, developing a novel vaccine against the B. avium infection is crucial. Here, we constructed a recombinant Pichia pastoris transformant capable of expressing the outer membrane protein A (ompA) of B. avium to prepare the recombinant ompA subunit vaccine and then evaluated its immune effects. To further investigate the immunomodulation effects of Taishan Pinus massoniana pollen polysaccharides (TPPPS) on this subunit vaccine, three concentrations (20, 40, and 60 mg/mL) of TPPPS were used as the adjuvants of the ompA subunit vaccine respectively. The conventional Freund's incomplete adjuvant served as the control of TPPPS. Chickens in different groups were separately vaccinated with these vaccines thrice. During the monitoring period, serum antibody titers, concentrations of serum IL-4, percentages of CD4 + and CD8 + T-lymphocytes in the peripheral blood, lymphocyte transformation rate, and protection rate were detected. Results showed that the pure ompA vaccine induced the production of anti-ompA antibody, the secretion of IL-4, the increase of CD4 + T-lymphocytes counts and lymphocyte transformation rate in the peripheral blood. Moreover, the pure ompA vaccine provided a protection rate of 71.67% after the B. avium challenge. Notably, TPPPS adjuvant vaccines induced higher levels of immune responses than the pure ompA vaccine, and 60 mg/mL TPPPS adjuvant vaccine showed optimal immune effects and had a 91.67% protection rate. Our findings indicated that this recombinant B. avium ompA subunit vaccine combined with TPPPS had high immunostimulatory potential. Results provided a new perspective for B. avium subunit vaccine research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterologous production of hydrolytic enzymes is important for green and white biotechnology since these enzymes serve as efficient biocatalysts for the conversion of a wide variety of raw materials into value-added products. Lactic acid bacteria are interesting cell factories for the expression of hydrolytic enzymes as many of them are generally recognized as safe and require only a simple cultivation process. We are studying a potentially foodgrade expression system for secretion of hydrolytic enzymes into the culture medium, since this enables easy harvesting and purification, while allowing direct use of the enzymes in food applications. Results: We studied overexpression of a chitosanase (CsnA) and a β-mannanase (ManB), from Bacillus licheniformis and Bacillus subtilis, respectively, in Lactobacillus plantarum, using the pSIP system for inducible expression. The enzymes were over-expressed in three forms: without a signal peptide, with their natural signal peptide and with the well-known OmpA signal peptide from Escherichia coli. The total production levels and secretion efficiencies of CsnA and ManB were highest when using the native signal peptides, and both were reduced considerably when using the OmpA signal. At 20 h after induction with 12.5 ng/mL of inducing peptide in MRS media containing 20 g/L glucose, the yields and secretion efficiencies of the proteins with their native signal peptides were 50 kU/L and 84% for ManB, and 79 kU/L and 56% for CsnA, respectively. In addition, to avoid using antibiotics, the erythromycin resistance gene was replaced on the expression plasmid with the alanine racemase (alr) gene, which led to comparable levels of protein production and secretion efficiency in a suitable, alr-deficient L. plantarum host. Conclusions: ManB and CsnA were efficiently produced and secreted in L. plantarum using pSIP-based expression vectors containing either an erythromycin resistance or the alr gene as selection marker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Salmonella gallinarum is the causative agent of fowl typhoid. Being a Gram-negative bacteria, its outer membrane proteins (OMP) can be regulated by different microenvironments. S. gallinarum was cultured under the following conditions: nutrient broth (NB), NB supplemented with serum from specific pathogen-free birds (NBS) and NB with serum incubated at 56 °C prior to incubation with the bacteria (NBSD); OMP were subsequently extracted. Several changes were observed in the apparent expression of OMP, mainly a decrease in an OMP with a size of 30 kDa, approximately, under the NBS condition. In contrast, the same event was not observed in NB and NBSD when using one- and two-dimensional polyacrylamide gels (SDS-PAGE). Using the OMP with a size of 30 kDa, approximately, as antigen in indirect ELISA, we were able to differentiate serum from healthy and vaccinated birds, as well as birds infected with S. gallinarum and S. enteritidis. The amino-terminal of this protein was sequenced, showing 100 % identity with OmpA of S. typhimurium. Subsequently, we designed primers to amplify the gene by PCR. The partial sequence of the amplified gene showed 100 % identity with OmpA of S. gallinarum. (1) Heat-labile serum components influence the presence of OmpA in the OM of S. gallinarum; (2) by the way of ELISA, OmpA allows to specifically differentiate healthy from diseased birds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chlamydophilosis is an important, worldwide zoonosis caused by Chlamydophila psittaci. The aim of this study was to detect C. psittaci on choanal and cloacal swabs which were collected from 178 captive psittacine birds (23 different species) from eight provinces in Thailand. ompA gene detection using nested PCR showed that 7.87% (n=14) were positive for C. psittaci. The C. psittaci detection from two site collections (choanal and cloacal swabs) using nested PCR was more sensitive than from one site collection. Most positive samples (n=11) were from asymptomatic adult birds and three other positive birds showing clinical signs were juvenile birds. As a result, the adult birds which showed no clinical signs could be the explanation for the spread of the disease. Nucleotide sequences for all positive samples were identified as genotype A. Most positive samples had identical nucleotide sequences with C. psittaci isolated from humans in Japan (accession number AB468956). This study demonstrated that C. psittaci genotype A could be found in both symptomatic and asymptomatic infections from the captive psittacine birds in Thailand. Therefore, disease monitoring is necessary to prevent and control disease for bird owners and aviculture in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Intestinal inflammation has been implicated in a number of diseases, including diabetes, Crohn's disease, and irritable bowel syndrome. Important components of inflammation are interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), which are elevated both on the luminal and submucosal sides of the intestinal epithelial barrier in several diseases. Here, we developed a novel Escherichia coli based detection system for IFN-γ and TNF-α comprised of a chimeric protein and a simple signal transduction construct, which could be deployed on the luminal side of the intestine. OmpA of E. coli was engineered to detect IFN-γ or TNF-α through the replacement of extracellular loops with peptide fragments from OprF of P. aeruginosa. OmpA/OprF chimeras were developed, capable of binding IFN-γ or TNF-α. The specific peptide fragments that bind IFN-γ were identified. IFN-γ or TNF-α binding the OmpA/OprF chimera induced the pspA promoter, driving β-galactosidase production. The OmpA/OprF chimera had a detection limit of 300 pM for IFN-γ and 150 pM for TNF-α. This work will further the development of bacteria based therapeutics for the treatment of inflammatory diseases of the gut. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2016;113: 492-500. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ixodes ricinus from Italy were examined for the first time to detect whether rickettsiae were present. Using molecular methods, we detected three different spotted fever group rickettsiae, including Rickettsia helvetica. Our results raise the possibility that bacteria other than R. conorii are involved in rickettsial diseases in Italy.

In cells, β -barrel membrane proteins are transported in unfolded form to an outer membrane into which they fold and insert. Model systems have been established to investigate the mechanisms of insertion and folding of these versatile proteins into detergent micelles, lipid bilayers and even synthetic amphipathic polymers. In these experiments, insertion into lipid membranes is initiated from unfolded forms that do not display residual β -sheet secondary structure. These studies therefore have allowed the investigation of membrane protein folding and insertion in great detail. Folding of β -barrel membrane proteins into lipid bilayers has been monitored from unfolded forms by dilution of chaotropic denaturants that keep the protein unfolded as well as from unfolded forms present in complexes with molecular chaperones from cells. This review is aimed to provide an overview of the principles and mechanisms observed for the folding of β -barrel transmembrane proteins into lipid bilayers, the importance of lipid–protein interactions and the function of molecular chaperones and folding assistants. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Lipid–protein interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advances in computational design methods have made possible extensive engineering of soluble proteins, but designed β-barrel membrane proteins await improvements in our understanding of the sequence determinants of folding and stability. A subset of the amino acid residues of membrane proteins interact with the cell membrane, and the design rules that govern this lipid-facing surface are poorly understood. We applied a residue-level depth potential for β-barrel membrane proteins to the complete redesign of the lipid-facing surface of Escherichia coli OmpA. Initial designs failed to fold correctly, but reversion of a small number of mutations indicated by backcross experiments yielded designs with substitutions to up to 60% of the surface that did support folding and membrane insertion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pasteurella multocida is an important pathogen in food-producing animals and numerous virulence genes have been identified in an attempt to elucidate the pathogenesis of pasteurellosis. Currently, some of these genes including the capsule biosynthesis genes, the toxA and the OMPs-encoding genes have been suggested as epidemiological markers. However, the number of studies concerning ruminant isolates is limited, while, no attempt has ever been made to investigate the existence of ompA sequence diversity among P. multocida isolates. The aim of the present study was the comparative analysis of 144 P. multocida pneumonic isolates obtained from sheep, goats, cattle and pigs by determining the distribution of the ompA -types in conjunction with the cap -locus and toxA patterns. The ompA genotypes of the isolates were determined using both a PCR-RFLP method and DNA sequence analysis. The most prevalent capsule biosynthesis gene among the isolates was capA (86.1%); a noticeable, however, rate of capD -positive isolates (38.6%) was found among the ovine isolates that had been associated primarily with the capsule type A in the past. Moreover, an unexpectedly high percentage of toxA -positive pneumonic isolates was noticed among small ruminants (93.2% and 85.7% in sheep and goats, respectively), indicating an important epidemiological role of toxigenic P. multocida for these species. Despite their great heterogeneity, certain ompA -genotypes were associated with specific host species, showing evidence of a host preference. The OmpA-based PCR-RFLP method developed proved to be a valuable tool in typing P. multocida strains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mannheimia haemolytica is the causal agent of the shipping fever in bovines and produces high economic losses worldwide. This bacterium possesses different virulence attributes to achieve a successful infection. One of the main virulence factors expressed by a pathogen is through adhesion molecules; however, the components participating in this process are not totally known. The present work identified a M. haemolytica 41 kDa outer membrane protein (Omp) that participates in bacterial adhesion. This protein showed 100% identity with the OmpH from M. haemolytica as determined by mass spectrometry and it interacts with sheep fibrinogen. The 41 kDa M. haemolytica OmpH interacts with bovine monocytes; a previous incubation of M. haemolytica with a rabbit hyperimmune serum against this Omp diminished 45% cell adhesion. The OmpH was recognized by serum from bovines affected by acute or chronic pneumonia, indicating its in vivo expression; moreover, it showed immune cross-reaction with the serum of rabbit infected with Pasteurella multocida. The OmpH is present in biofilms and previous incubation of M. haemolytca with rabbit serum against this protein diminished biofilm, indicating this protein's participation in biofilm formation. M. haemolytica OmpH is proposed as a relevant immunogen in bovine pneumonia protection. [Display omitted] • OmpH is a outer membrane protein functions as porin. • Outer membrane proteins could act as adhesins. • OmpH acts as M. haemolytica adhesin. • OmpH I an important component in M. haemolytica biofilms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Klebsiella pneumoniae ( K. pneumoniae ) is a Gram-negative bacterium that is predominantly associated with liver abscesses in global diabetic patients. High levels of glucose in the surrounding of K. pneumonia increase its pathogenicity including capsular polysaccharide (CPS) and fimbriae. Other important virulent factors include outer membrane protein A (ompA) and regulator mucoid phenotype A (rmpA). The objective of this investigation was to elucidate the effects of high glucose on rmpA and ompA gene expression and serum resistance of K. pneumoniae causing liver abscess., Patients and Methods: The clinical history of 57 patients suffering from K. pneumoniae -caused liver abscesses (KLA) was acquired and their clinical and laboratory manifestations in the presence or absence of diabetes were analyzed. The antimicrobial susceptibility, serotypes, and virulence genes were tested. Clinical isolates of 3 serotype-K1 hypervirulent K. pneumoniae (hvKP) were used to detect the effect of exogenous high glucose on rmpA, ompA , and clbB genes expression, and bacterial serum resistance., Results: KLA patients with diabetes showed higher C-reactive protein (CRP) compared to non-diabetic KLA patients. Furthermore, the diabetic group showed increased incidences of sepsis and invasive infections, and their length of hospital stay was also prolonged. Pre-incubation of K. pneumoniae in high glucose (0.5%) concentration up-regulated rmpA, ompA , and clbB genes expression. However, cAMP supplementation, which was inhibited by environmental glucose, reversed the increase of rmpA and ompA in a cAMP-dependent manner. Moreover, hvKP strains incubated in high glucose also exhibited enhanced protection from serum killing., Conclusion: High glucose levels reflected by poor glycemic control has increased gene expression of rmpA and ompA in hvKP by the cAMP signaling pathway and enhanced its resistance to serum killing, thus providing a new and reasonable explanation for the high incidences of sepsis and invasive infections in KLA patients with diabetes., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare for this work., (© 2023 Tang et al.)

Background: Non-typhoidal Salmonella (NTS) is one of the important bacteria that cause foodborne diseases and invasive infections in children and elderly people. Since NTS infection is difficult to control due to the emergence of antibiotic-resistant species and its adverse effect on immune response, the development of a vaccine against NTS would be necessary. This study aimed to develop a multi-epitope vaccine against the most prevalent serovars of NTS (Salmonella Typhimurium, Salmonella Enteritidis) using an immunoinformatics approach and targeting OmpA, OmpD, and enterotoxin (Stn)., Results: Initially, the B cell and T cell epitopes were predicted. Then, epitopes and suitable adjuvant were assembled by molecular linkers to construct a multi-epitope vaccine. The computational tools predicted the tertiary structure, refined the tertiary structure and validated the final vaccine construct. The effectiveness of the vaccine was evaluated via molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulation, and in silico immune simulation. The vaccine model had good binding affinity and stability with MHC-I, MHC-II, and toll-like receptors (TLR-1, 2, 4) as well as activation of T cells, IgM, IgG, IFN-γ and IL-2 responses. Furthermore, after codon optimization of the vaccine sequence, this sequence was cloned in E. coli plasmid vector pET-30a (+) within restriction sites of HindIII and BamHI., Conclusions: This study, for the first time, introduced a multi-epitope vaccine based on OmpA, OmpD and enterotoxin (Stn) of NTS that could stimulate T and B cell immune responses and produced in the prokaryotic system. This vaccine was validated in-silico phase which is an essential study to reduce challenges before in vitro and in vivo studies., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The presence or absence of BlsA, a protein with a blue light-sensing flavin domain in the genomes of Acinetobacter species has aroused curiosity about its roles in the regulation of bacterial lifestyle under light. Genomic and transcriptomic analyses revealed the loss of BlsA in several multidrug-resistant (MDR) A. baumannii strains as well as the light-mediated induction of blsA , along with a possible BlsA-interacting partner BipA. Their direct in vivo interactions were verified using a bacterial two-hybrid system. The results demonstrated that the C-terminal region of BipA could bind to the C-terminal residues of BlsA under blue light at 23°C but not at 37°C. Genetic manipulations of blsA and bipA revealed that the coexistence of BlsA and BipA was required to induce the light-dependent expression of ompA in A. baumannii ATCC 17978 at 23°C. The same phenomenon occurred in the BlsA-deficient MDR strain in our functional complementation assay; however, the underlying molecular mechanism remains poorly understood. BlsA-modulated amounts of OmpA, the most abundant porin, in the outer membrane affected the membrane integrity and permeability of small molecules. Dark conditions or the deletion of ompA made the membrane more permeable to lipophilic ethidium bromide (EtBr) but not to meropenem. Interestingly, light illumination and low temperature conditions made the cells more sensitive to meropenem; however, this bactericidal effect was not noted in the blsA mutant or in the BlsA-deficient MDR strains. Light-mediated cell death and the reduction of biofilm formation at 23°C were abolished in the blsA mutant strain, suggesting multifaceted roles of BlsA in A. baumannii strains. IMPORTANCE Little is known about the functional roles of BlsA and its interacting partners in Acinetobacter species. Intriguingly, no BlsA homolog was found in several clinical isolates, suggesting that BlsA was not required inside the host because of the lack of blue light and the warm temperature conditions. As many chromophore-harboring proteins interact with various partners to control light-dependent cellular behaviors, the maintenance of blsA in the genomes of many Acinetobacter species during their evolution may be beneficial when fluctuations occur in two important environmental factors: light and temperature. Our study is the first to report the novel protein partner of BlsA, namely, BipA, and its contribution to multiple phenotypic changes, including meropenem resistance and biofilm formation. Rapid physiological acclimation to changing light or temperature conditions may be possible in the presence of the light-sensing BlsA protein, which may have more interacting partners than expected.

Transmembrane proteins span lipid bilayer membranes and serve essential functions in all living cells. Membrane-inserted domains are of either α-helical or β -barrel structure. Despite their biological importance, the biophysical mechanisms of the folding and insertion of proteins into membranes are not well understood. While the relative composition of the secondary structure has been examined by circular dichroism spectroscopy in folding studies for several outer membrane proteins, it is currently not known how individual β -strands fold. Here, the folding and insertion of the β -barrel assembly machinery protein A (BamA) from the outer membrane of Escherichia coli into lipid bilayers were investigated, and the formation of strand nine ( β 9 ) of BamA was examined. Eight single-cysteine mutants of BamA were overexpressed and isolated in unfolded form in 8 M urea. In each of these mutants, one of the residues of strand β 9 , from R572 to V579, was replaced by a cysteine and labeled with the fluorophore IAEDANS for site-directed fluorescence spectroscopy. Upon urea-dilution, the mutants folded into the native structure and were inserted into lipid bilayers of dilauroylphosphatidylcholine, similar to wild-type BamA. An aqueous and a membrane-adsorbed folding intermediate of BamA could be identified by strong shifts in the intensity maxima of the IAEDANS fluorescence of the labeled mutants of BamA towards shorter wavelengths, even in the absence of lipid bilayers. The shifts were greatest for membrane-adsorbed mutants and smaller for the inserted, folded mutants or the aqueous intermediates. The spectra of the mutants V573C-, L575C-, G577C-, and V579C-BamA, facing the lipid bilayer, displayed stronger shifts than the spectra recorded for the mutants R572C-, N574C-, T576C-, and K578C-BamA, facing the β -barrel lumen, in both the membrane-adsorbed form and the folded, inserted form. This alternating pattern was neither observed for the IAEDANS spectra of the unfolded forms nor for the water-collapsed forms, indicating that strand β 9 forms in a membrane-adsorbed folding intermediate of BamA. The combination of cysteine scanning mutagenesis and site-directed fluorescence labeling is shown to be a valuable tool in examining the local secondary structure formation of transmembrane proteins.

Melioidosis is an emerging infectious disease in India and caused by gram-negative, soil saprophyte bacteria Burkholderia pseudomallei . This disease is endemic in Southeast Asia and northern Australia, and sporadic cases of melioidosis are also reported from southern states of India. The present study reports the cloning, expression, and purification of recombinant protein outer membrane protein A (OmpA) of B. pseudomallei and its evaluation in indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) format with 87 serum samples collected from Manipal, Karnataka, India. Twenty-three samples from culture confirmed cases (n = 23) of melioidosis, 25 serum samples from patients of other febrile illness and pyrexia of unknown origin (n = 25), and 39 serum samples from healthy blood donors (n = 39) from Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, were tested in this assay format. The assay showed sensitivity of 82.6% and specificity of 93.75%. The recombinant OmpA based indirect ELISA will be a useful tool for serodiagnosis of melioidosis in large scale rapid screening of clinical samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Riemerella anatipestifer , a Gram-negative bacillus, causes septicemia that can result in high mortality for ducklings. In this study, we evaluated the immune response and protective efficacy provided by a subunit vaccine containing recombinant outer membrane protein A (rOmpA) and plasmid constructs containing CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (ODN). Results showed that CpG ODN enhanced both humoral and cell-mediated immunity elicited by rOmpA as early as two weeks after primary immunization. When compared to ducks immunized with rOmpA, ducks immunized with rOmpA + CpG ODN showed higher levels ( p < 0.05) of antibody titer, T cell proliferation, and percentages of CD4 + and CD8 + T cell in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). The relative fold inductions of mRNA expression of Th1-type (IFN-γ and IL-12), and Th2-type (IL-6) cytokines in PBMCs isolated from ducks immunized with rOmpA + CpG ODN were significantly higher than those of the rOmpA group. Homologous challenge result showed that the rOmpA + CpG ODN vaccine reduced the pathological score by 90% in comparison with the saline control. In conclusion, our study found that CpG ODN can enhance both humoral and cellular immunity elicited by a rOmpA vaccine. The rOmpA + CpG ODN vaccine can be further developed as a subunit vaccine against R. anatipestifer . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proteus mirabilis ( P. mirabilis ) is a zoonotic pathogen that has recently presented a rising infection rate in the poultry industry. To develop an effective vaccine to protect chickens against P. mirabilis infection, OmpA, one of the major outer membrane proteins of P. mirabilis , was expressed in Pichia pastoris . The concentration of the expressed recombinant OmpA protein reached 8.0 μg/mL after induction for 96 h with 1.0% methanol in the culture. In addition, OmpA protein was confirmed by SDS–PAGE and Western blot analysis using the antibody against Escherichia coli -expressed OmpA protein. Taishan Pinus massoniana pollen polysaccharide, a known plant-derived adjuvant, was mixed into the recombinant OmpA protein to prepare the OmpA subunit vaccine. We then subcutaneously inoculated this vaccine into chickens to examine the immunoprotective effects. ELISA analysis indicated that an excellent antibody response against OmpA was elicited in the vaccinated chickens. Moreover, a high protection rate of 80.0% was observed in the vaccinated group, which was subsequently challenged with P. mirabilis . The results suggest that the eukaryotic P. mirabilis OmpA was an ideal candidate protein for developing an effective subunit vaccine against P. mirabilis infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli are surrounded by two membranes with a thin peptidoglycan (PG)-layer located in between them in the periplasmic space. The outer membrane protein A (OmpA) is a 325-residue protein and it is the major protein component of the outer membrane of E. coli . Previous structure determinations have focused on the N-terminal fragment (residues 1–171) of OmpA, which forms an eight stranded transmembrane β-barrel in the outer membrane. Consequently it was suggested that OmpA is composed of two independently folded domains in which the N-terminal β-barrel traverses the outer membrane and the C-terminal domain (residues 180–325) adopts a folded structure in the periplasmic space. However, some reports have proposed that full-length OmpA can instead refold in a temperature dependent manner into a single domain forming a larger transmembrane pore. Here, we have determined the NMR solution structure of the C-terminal periplasmic domain of E. coli OmpA (OmpA 180–325 ). Our structure reveals that the C-terminal domain folds independently into a stable globular structure that is homologous to the previously reported PG-associated domain of Neisseria meningitides RmpM. Our results lend credence to the two domain structure model and a PG-binding function for OmpA, and we could indeed localize the PG-binding site on the protein through NMR chemical shift perturbation experiments. On the other hand, we found no evidence for binding of OmpA 180–325 with the TonB protein. In addition, we have also expressed and purified full-length OmpA (OmpA 1–325 ) to study the structure of the full-length protein in micelles and nanodiscs by NMR spectroscopy. In both membrane mimetic environments, the recombinant OmpA maintains its two domain structure that is connected through a flexible linker. A series of temperature-dependent HSQC experiments and relaxation dispersion NMR experiments detected structural destabilization in the bulge region of the periplasmic domain of OmpA above physiological temperatures, which may induce dimerization and play a role in triggering the previously reported larger pore formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence and faecal shedding of Chlamydia spp. in sheep in Australia has not been well described. Two species-specific quantitative PCRs (qPCRs) targeting the chlamydial outer membrane protein cell surface antigen gene (ompA) were validated and used to determine the prevalence and faecal shedding of C. abortus and C. pecorum from faecal samples of lambs at three sampling times (weaning, post-weaning and pre-slaughter) from eight farms in South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia. A total of 3412 faecal samples were collected and screened from approximately 1189 lambs across the four states. C. abortus was not detected in any of the samples screened. The overall prevalence of C. pecorum was 1027/3412 (30.1%) and median bacterial concentrations at weaning, post-weaning and pre-slaughter were 1.8 x 107, 1.2 x 107 and 9.6 x 105/g faeces, respectively. A subset of C. pecorum positive samples from each farm, (n = 48) was sequenced to confirm their identity. The present study demonstrates that C. pecorum is prevalent in Australian sheep, highlighting a need for further research on the impact of this bacterium on production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Folding of outer membrane proteins (OMPs) is usually impeded by anionic surfactants. [•] Many microorganisms produce anionic biosurfactants such as rhamnolipids (RL). [•] OmpA can be folded in RL above its cmc though RL reduces OmpA stability. [•] Folding kinetics in RL are only slightly slower than in neutral surfactants. [•] RL might be able to help bacteria export functional OMPs in secreted micelles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Yersinia enterocolitica outer membrane protein A (OmpA) is one of the major outer membrane proteins with high immunogenicity. We performed the polymorphism analysis for the outer membrane protein A and putative outer membrane protein A (p-ompA) family protein gene of 318 Y. enterocolitica strains. Results: The data showed all the pathogenic strains and biotype 1A strains harboring ystB gene carried both ompA and p-ompA genes; parts of the biotype 1A strains not harboring ystB gene carried either ompA or p-ompA gene. In non-pathogenic strains (biotype 1A), distribution of the two genes and ystB were highly correlated, showing genetic polymorphism. The pathogenic and non-pathogenic, highly and weakly pathogenic strains were divided into different groups based on sequence analysis of two genes. Although the variations of the sequences, the translated proteins and predicted secondary or tertiary structures of OmpA and P-OmpA were similar. Conclusions: OmpA and p-ompA gene were highly conserved for pathogenic Y. enterocolitica. The distributions of two genes were correlated with ystB for biotype 1A strains. The polymorphism analysis results of the two genes probably due to different bio-serotypes of the strains, and reflected the dissemination of different bio-serotype clones of Y. enterocolitica. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A DNA vaccine for foot and mouth disease (FMD) based on mannosylated chitosan nanoparticles was evaluated in guinea pigs. The DNA construct was comprised of FMD virus full length-VP1 gene and outer membrane protein A (Omp A) gene of Salmonella typhimurium as a Toll-like receptor (TLR)-ligand in pVAC vector. Groups of guinea pigs immunized either intramuscularly or intra-nasally were evaluated for induction of virus neutralizing antibodies, Th1(IgG2) and Th2 (IgG1) responses, lymphocyte proliferation, reactive nitrogen intermediate production, secretory IgA for naso-mucosal immune response and protection upon homotypic type O virulent FMD virus challenge. The results indicate the synergistic effect of OmpA on the immunogenic potential of FMD DNA vaccine construct delivered using mannosylated chitosan nano-particles by different routes of administration. These observations suggest the substantial improvement in all the immunological parameters with enhanced protection in guinea pigs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

OmpA, the most abundant porin in Stenotrophomonas maltophilia KJ, exists as a two-domain structure with an N-terminal domain of β-barrel structure embedded in the outer membrane and a C-terminal domain collocated in the periplasm. KJΔOmpA 299-356 , an ompA mutant of S. maltophilia KJ with a truncated OmpA devoid of 299 to 356 amino acids (aa), was able to stably embed in the outer membrane. KJΔOmpA 299-356 was more susceptible to β-lactams than wild-type KJ. We aimed to elucidate the mechanism underlying the Δ ompA 299-356 -mediated increase in β-lactam susceptibility (abbreviated as "ΔOmpA 299-356 phenotype"). KJΔOmpA 299-356 , a KJ2 mutant with truncated OmpA devoid of299 to 356 aa, had comparable β-lactam susceptibility. Both lines of evidence indicate that decreased β-lactamase activity contributes to the ΔOmpA 299-356 , a KJ2 mutant with truncated OmpA devoid of299 to 356 aa, had comparable β-lactam susceptibility. Both lines of evidence indicate that decreased β-lactamase activity contributes to the ΔOmpA 299-356 phenotype. We analyzed the transcriptome results of KJ and KJΔOmpA 299-356 , focusing on PG homeostasis-associated genes. Among the 36 genes analyzed, the nagA gene was upregulated 4.65-fold in KJΔOmpA 299-356 . Deletion of the nagA gene from the chromosome of KJΔOmpA 299-356 restored β-lactam susceptibility and CAZ-induced β-lactamase activity to wild-type levels, verifying that nagA -upregulation in KJΔOmpA 299-356 contributes to the ΔOmpA 299-356 phenotype. Furthermore, transcriptome analysis revealed that rpoE (Smlt3555) and rpoP (Smlt3514) were significantly upregulated in KJΔOmpA 299-356 . The deletion mutant construction, β-lactam susceptibility, and β-lactamase activity analysis demonstrated that σ P , but not σ E , was involved in the ΔOmpA 299-356 phenotype. A real-time quantitative (qRT-PCR) assay confirmed that nagA is a member of the σ P regulon. The involvement of the σ P -NagA-L1/L2 regulatory circuit in the ΔOmpA 299-356 phenotype was manifested. IMPORTANCE -NagA-L1/L2 regulatory circuit is triggered due to the loss of the OmpA-PG interaction. This study extends the understanding on the porin defect and antibiotic susceptibility. Porin defects may cause opposite impacts on antibiotic susceptibility, which is dependent on the involvement of the defect. Blocking the porin channel role can increase antibiotic resistance; in contrast, the loss of porin structure role may increase antibiotic susceptibility.P -NagA-L1/L2 regulatory circuit is triggered due to the loss of the OmpA-PG interaction. This study extends the understanding on the porin defect and antibiotic susceptibility. Porin defects may cause opposite impacts on antibiotic susceptibility, which is dependent on the involvement of the defect. Blocking the porin channel role can increase antibiotic resistance; in contrast, the loss of porin structure role may increase antibiotic susceptibility.

Despite recent advances no solution structure for a true G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) is available today due to biochemical and spectroscopic problems. Herein we review our attempts to obtain assignments of GPCRs based on fragments comprising 2-3 transmembrane helices. The fragments are expressed in a heterologous system, and studied in detergent micelles using solution NMR spectroscopy. We report on the status of assignments of fragments from the Y4 receptor, a human GPCR. Assignments for the majority of the backbone resonances are available as well as sidechain assignments for the first two TM helices. Residues of TM4 are largely invisible. We review technical issues in preparing these samples and in the data analysis. In addition we developed an approach in which we have grafted the extracellular loops of the Y1 receptor onto a beta-barrel scaffold derived from the E. coli outer membrane protein OmpA. We could demonstrate that all loops can be successfully transferred, and that the resulting protein can be successfully refolded. The system is capable of recognizing the ligands from the neuropeptide Y family.

Abstract: The Gram-negative bacterium Gallibacterium anatis is a major cause of salpingitis and peritonitis in egg-laying chickens, leading to decreased egg-production worldwide. Increased knowledge of the pathogenesis and virulence factors is important to better understand and prevent the negative effects of G. anatis. To this end outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) are natural secretion products of Gram-negative bacteria, displaying an enormous functional diversity and promising results as vaccine candidates. This is the first study to report that G. anatis secretes OMVs during in vitro growth. By use of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and SDS-PAGE, we showed that changes in in vitro growth conditions, including incubation time, media composition and temperature, affected the OMV production and protein composition. A large protein band was increased in its concentration after prolonged growth. Analysis by LC–MS/MS indicated that the band contained two proteins; the 320.1kDa FHA precursor, FhaB, and a 407.8kDa protein containing a von Willebrand factor type A (vWA) domain. Additional two major outer-membrane (OM) proteins could be identified in all samples; the OmpH-homolog, OmpC, and OmpA. To understand the OMV formation better, a tolR deletion mutation (ΔtolR) was generated in G. anatis. This resulted in a constantly high and growth-phase independent production of OMVs, suggesting that depletion of peptidoglycan linkages plays a role in the OMV formation in G. anatis. In conclusion, our results show that G. anatis produce OMVs in vitro and the OMV protein profile suggests that the production is an important and well-regulated ability employed by the bacteria, which may be used for vaccine production purposes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The long term survival of the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) is at risk due to a range of threatening processes. A major contributing factor is disease caused by infection with Chlamydia pecorum, which has been detected in most mainland koala populations and is associated with ocular and genital tract infections. A critical aspect for the development of vaccines against koala chlamydial infections is a thorough understanding of the prevalence and strain diversity of C. pecorum infections across wild populations. In this study, we describe the largest survey (403 koalas from eight wild populations and three wildlife hospitals) examining the diversity of C. pecorum infections. 181 of the 403 koalas tested (45%) positive for C. pecorum by species-specific quantitative PCR with infection rates ranging from 20% to 61% in the eight wild populations sampled. The ompA gene, which encodes the chlamydial major outer membrane protein (MOMP), has been the major target of several chlamydial vaccines. Based on our analysis of the diversity of MOMP amino types in the infected koalas, we conclude that, (a) there exists significant diversity of C. pecorum strains in koalas, with 10 distinct, full length C. pecorum MOMP amino types identified in the 11 koala locations sampled, (b) despite this diversity, there are predicted T and B cell epitopes in both conserved as well as variable domains of MOMP which suggest cross-amino type immune responses, and (c) a recombinant MOMP-based vaccine consisting of MOMP “F” could potentially induce heterotypic protection against a range of C. pecorum strains. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background Protein PIII is one of the major outer membrane proteins of Neisseria gonorrhoeae, 95% identical to RmpM (reduction modifiable protein M) or class 4 protein of Neisseria meningitidis. RmpM is known to be a membrane protein associated by non-covalent bonds to the peptidoglycan layer and interacting with PorA/PorB porin complexes resulting in the stabilization of the bacterial membrane. The C-terminal domain of PIII (and RmpM) is highly homologous to members of the OmpA family, known to have a role in adhesion/invasion in many bacterial species. The contribution of PIII in membrane architecture and its role in the interaction with epithelial cells has never been investigated. Results We generated a ΔpIII knock-out mutant strain and evaluated the effects of the loss of PIII expression on bacterial morphology and on outer membrane composition. Deletion of the pIII gene does not cause any alteration in bacterial morphology or sensitivity to detergents. Moreover, the expression profile of the main membrane proteins remains the same for the wild-type and knock-out strains, with the exception of the NG1873 which is not exported to the outer membrane and accumulates in the inner membrane in the ΔpIII knock-out mutant strain. We also show that purified PIII protein is able to bind human cervical and urethral cells and that the ΔpIII knock-out mutant strain has a lower ability to adhere to human cervical and urethral cells. Conclusion Here we demonstrated that the PIII protein does not play a key structural role in the membrane organization of gonococcus and does not induce major effects on the expression of the main outer membrane proteins. However, in the PIII knock-out strain, the NG1873 protein is not localized in the outer membrane as it is in the wild-type strain suggesting a possible interaction of PIII with NG1873. The evidence that PIII binds to human epithelial cells derived from the female and male genital tract highlights a possible role of PIII in the virulence of gonococcus and suggests that the structural homology to OmpA is conserved also at functional level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objectives: Typhoid fever is caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi. OmpC, OmpF and OmpA, the three major outer membrane proteins (OMPs), could serve as vaccine candidates. Methods: The porins antigenicity was predicted in silico. The OMP genes were amplified, cloned and expressed. Sero-reactivities of the recombinant proteins purified by denaturing method were assayed by ELISA. BALB/c mice were immunized with the recombinant porins followed by bacterial challenge. Results: Bacterial challenge of the animal model brought about antibody triggering efficacy of the antigen in OmpF > OmpC > OmpA order. Experimental findings validated the in silico results. None of the antigens had synergic or antagonistic effects on each other from immune system induction points of view. Despite their high immunogenicity, none of the antigens was protective. However, administration of two or three antigens simultaneously resulted in retardation of lethal effect. Porins, in addition to their specific functions, share common functions. Hence, they can compensate for each other's functions. Conclusions: The produced antibodies could not eliminate the pathogenicity by blockade of one or some of the antigens. Porin antigens are not suitable vaccine candidates alone or in denatured forms. Native forms of the antigens maybe studied for protective immunogenicity. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Rickettsia monacensis, a spotted fever group rickettsia, was isolated from Ixodes nipponensis ticks collected from live-captured small mammals in South Jeolla province, Korea in 2006. Homogenates of tick tissues were inoculated into L929 and Vero cell monolayers using shell vial assays. After several passages, Giemsa staining revealed rickettsia-like organisms in the inoculated Vero cells, but not the L929 cells. Sequencing analysis revealed that the ompA-small part (25-614 bp region), ompA-large part (2849-4455 bp region), nearly full-length ompB (58-4889 bp region) and gltA (196-1236 bp region) of the isolates had similarities of 100%, 99.8%, 99.3% and 99.5%, respectively, to those of R. monacensis. Furthermore, phylogenetic analysis showed that the isolate was grouped into the cluster in the same way as R. monacensis in the trees of all genes examined. These results strongly suggest that the isolate is closely related to R. monacensis. As far as is known, this is the first report of isolation of R. monacensis from ticks in Korea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides information on a study on the development of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting the outer member protein A (ompA) gene of Bordetella hinzii, which infects primarily poultry and immunocompromised humans. It notes in the results that the ompA gene is widely distributed among prokaryotes and is highly polymorphic and adds that it has been proposed as a possible diagnostic target for Bordetella hinzii. It also cites the use of purified chromosomal deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) in determining the limit of detection for the optimized ompA-specific PCR and claims that this PCR can serve as an important diagnostic tool for specific identification of Bordetella hinzii in poultry and in additional host species, including humans.

Abstract: The OmpA family of outer membrane proteins is a group of genetically related, heat-modifiable, surface-exposed, porin proteins that are in high-copy number in the outer membrane of mainly Gram-negative bacteria. OmpA proteins are characterized by an N-terminal domain that forms an eight-stranded, anti-parallel β barrel, which is embedded in the outer membrane. The C-terminal domain is globular and located in the periplasmic space. Escherichia coli OmpA is the best characterized of the proteins. Other well-characterized OmpA-equivalent proteins from pathogenic bacteria include Pseudomonas aeruginosa OprF, Haemophilus influenzae P5, Klebsiella pneumoniae OmpA, and Chlamydia trachomatis major outer membrane protein (MOMP). OmpA from the veterinary pathogens Mannheimia haemolytica, Haemophilus parasuis, Leptospira interrogans, and Pasteurella multocida have been studied to a lesser extent. Among many of the pathogenic bacteria, OmpA proteins have important pathogenic roles including bacterial adhesion, invasion, or intracellular survival as well as evasion of host defenses or stimulators of pro-inflammatory cytokine production. These pathogenic roles are most commonly associated with central nervous system, respiratory and urogenital diseases. Alternatively, OmpA family proteins can serve as targets of the immune system with immunogenicity related to surface-exposed loops of the molecule. In several cases, OmpA proteins are under evaluation as potential vaccine candidates. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: It is widely believed that integral outer membrane (OM) proteins in bacteria are able to diffuse laterally in the OM. However, stable, immobile proteins have been identified in the OM of Escherichia coli. In explaining the observations, a hypothesized interaction of the immobilized OM proteins with the underlying peptidoglycan (PG) cell wall played a prominent role. Results: OmpA is an abundant outer membrane protein in E. coli containing a PG-binding domain. We use FRAP to investigate whether OmpA is able to diffuse laterally over long-range (> ∼100 nm) distances in the OM. First, we show that OmpA, containing a PG binding domain, does not exhibit long-range lateral diffusion in the OM. Then, to test whether PG interaction was required for this immobilization, we genetically removed the PG binding domain and repeated the FRAP experiment. To our surprise, this did not increase the mobility of the protein in the OM. Conclusions: OmpA exhibits an absence of long-range (> ∼100 nm) diffusion in the OM that is not caused by its PG binding domain. Therefore, other mechanisms are needed to explain this observation, such as the presence of physical barriers in the OM, or strong interactions with other elements in the cell envelope [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A novel Rickettsia was detected in the rotund tick, Ixodes kingi Bishopp, 1911, based on comparative DNA sequence analyses of 4 genes; the rickettsial-specific 17-kDa antigen gene, citrate synthase gene (gltA), the outer surface membrane protein A gene (ompA), and the 16S rRNA gene. The rickettsiae in I. kingi differed in nucleotide sequence from those of other Rickettsia species by 5.8–18.3% for the 17-kDa gene, 0.9–13.9% for gltA, 5.5–22.8% for ompA, and 0.9–1.6% for the 16S rRNA gene. Phylogenetic analyses of the sequence data revealed that this putative new species of Rickettsia, provisionally named Candidatus Rickettsia kingi, does not belong to the spotted fever group or typhus group of rickettsiae, but represents a sister taxon to R. canadensis and Candidatus Rickettsia tarasevichiae. This novel Rickettsia was found in 60 of the 87 (69%) ticks examined, which included all feeding life cycle stages of I. kingi. Although adult I. kingi occasionally parasitize dogs and humans, it remains to be determined if this Rickettsia is pathogenic to these host species. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Cronobacter spp. (formerly Enterobacter sakazakii), a pathogen commonly found in powdered infant formula (PIF), is a rare cause of invasive infection with a high mortality rate in neonates. In the present study, a realtime PCR assay was conducted to identify the pathogens in PIF using a TaqMan probe targeting the outer membrane protein A gene ( ompA) of Cronobacter spp. The specificity of the PCR assay was tested against 25 strains of Cronobacter spp. and 38 non- Cronobacter bacterial species. The detection limits of this method are 1.0×10 copy/μL in standard plasmid, 1.1 CFU/100 g in PIF through 38 h of enrichment, and 2.8×10 CFU/mL in phosphate-buffered saline (pH 7.0). Based on the detection limits, real-time PCR is more sensitive than simplex and duplex PCR. These methods were successfully applied to actual samples, indicating that this real-time PCR assay can be used for the detection of Cronobacter spp. in PIF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are critical elements of cell-cell communication. Here, we characterized the outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) released by specific clones of Escherichia coli isolated from the Long-Term Evolution Experiment after 50,000 generations (50K) of adaptation to glucose minimal medium. Compared with their ancestor, the evolved clones produce small OMVs but also larger ones which display variable amounts of both OmpA and LPS. Tracking ancestral, fluorescently labelled OMVs revealed that they fuse with both ancestral- and 50K-evolved cells, albeit in different proportions. We quantified that less than 2% of the cells from one 50K-evolved clone acquired the fluorescence delivered by OMVs from the ancestral strain but that one cell concomitantly fuses with several OMVs. Globally, our results showed that OMV production in E. coli is a phenotype that varies along bacterial evolution and question the contribution of OMVs-mediated interactions in bacterial adaptation.

The microbiota constitutes an important part of the holobiont in which extracellular vesicles (EVs) are key players in health, especially regarding inter- and intra-kingdom communications. Analysis of EVs from the red blood cell concentrates of healthy donors revealed variable amounts of OmpA and LPS in 12 of the 14 analyzed samples, providing indirect experimental evidence of the presence of microbiota EVs in human circulating blood in the absence of barrier disruption. To investigate the role of these microbiota EVs, we tracked the fusion of fluorescent Escherichia coli EVs with blood mononuclear cells and showed that, in the circulating blood, these EVs interacted almost exclusively with monocytes. This study demonstrates that bacterial EVs constitute critical elements of the host-microbiota cellular communication. The analysis of bacterial EVs should thus be systematically included in any characterization of human EVs.