9 research outputs found
Bacillus anthracis Spore Surface Protein BclA Mediates Complement Factor H Binding to Spores and Promotes Spore Persistence
Spores of Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax, are known to persist in the host lungs for prolonged periods of time, however the underlying mechanism is poorly understood. In this study, we demonstrated that BclA, a major surface protein of B. anthracis spores, mediated direct binding of complement factor H (CFH) to spores. The surface bound CFH retained its regulatory cofactor activity resulting in C3 degradation and inhibition of downstream complement activation. By comparing results from wild type C57BL/6 mice and complement deficient mice, we further showed that BclA significantly contributed to spore persistence in the mouse lungs and dampened antibody responses to spores in a complement C3-dependent manner. In addition, prior exposure to BclA deletion spores (ΔbclA) provided significant protection against lethal challenges by B. anthracis, whereas the isogenic parent spores did not, indicating that BclA may also impair protective immunity. These results describe for the first time an immune inhibition mechanism of B. anthracis mediated by BclA and CFH that promotes spore persistence in vivo. The findings also suggested an important role of complement in persistent infections and thus have broad implications
Significance of glacio-morphological factors in glacier retreat: a case study of part of Chenab basin, Himalaya
Immunogenicity of anthrax recombinant peptides and killed spores in goats and protective efficacy of immune sera in A/J mouse model
Endospore surface properties of commonly used Bacillus anthracis surrogates vary in aqueous solution
Additional file 1: of Protection of farm goats by combinations of recombinant peptides and formalin inactivated spores from a lethal Bacillus anthracis challenge under field conditions
Supporting tables. Table S1. Anti-rPA83 IgG titers. Table S2. TNA titers. Table S3. Anti-rBclA IgG titers. Table S4. Anti-FIS IgG titers. (XLSX 24 kb