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Ferrara G, Colitti B, Flores-Ramirez G, Pagnini U, Iovane G, Rosati S, Montagnaro S. Detection of Coxiella antibodies in ruminants using a SucB recombinant antigen. J Vet Diagn Invest 2023; 35:721-726. [PMID: 37705242 PMCID: PMC10621550 DOI: 10.1177/10406387231199964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The detection of Coxiella burnetii in ruminants remains challenging despite the use of new technology and the accumulation of novel knowledge. Serology tools, the primary methods of infection surveillance in veterinary medicine, have limitations. We used recombinant antigen production to develop an ELISA based on the SucB protein, one of the major immunodominant antigens described in humans and laboratory animals. We produced the antigen successfully in an Escherichia coli heterologous system, confirmed by sequencing and mass spectrometry, and seen as a band of ~50 kDa in SDS-PAGE and on western blot analysis. We compared the performance of the recombinant ELISA with a commercial ELISA. We observed agreement of 83.5% and a substantial Cohen κ value of 0.67 in our pilot study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gianmarco Ferrara
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples, “Federico II”, Naples, Italy
| | - Barbara Colitti
- Department of Veterinary Science, University of Turin, Grugliasco, TO, Italy
| | | | - Ugo Pagnini
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples, “Federico II”, Naples, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Iovane
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples, “Federico II”, Naples, Italy
| | - Sergio Rosati
- Department of Veterinary Science, University of Turin, Grugliasco, TO, Italy
| | - Serena Montagnaro
- Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples, “Federico II”, Naples, Italy
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Csicsay F, Flores-Ramirez G, Zuñiga-Navarrete F, Bartošová M, Fučíková A, Pajer P, Dresler J, Škultéty Ľ, Quevedo-Diaz M. Proteomic analysis of Rickettsia akari proposes a 44 kDa-OMP as a potential biomarker for Rickettsialpox diagnosis. BMC Microbiol 2020; 20:200. [PMID: 32640994 PMCID: PMC7341715 DOI: 10.1186/s12866-020-01877-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 06/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Rickettsialpox is a febrile illness caused by the mite-borne pathogen Rickettsia akari. Several cases of this disease are reported worldwide annually. Nevertheless, the relationship between the immunogenicity of R. akari and disease development is still poorly understood. Thus, misdiagnosis is frequent. Our study is aiming to identify immunogenic proteins that may improve disease recognition and enhance subsequent treatment. To achieve this goal, two proteomics methodologies were applied, followed by immunoblot confirmation. Results Three hundred and sixteen unique proteins were identified in the whole-cell extract of R. akari. The most represented protein groups were found to be those involved in translation, post-translational modifications, energy production, and cell wall development. A significant number of proteins belonged to amino acid transport and intracellular trafficking. Also, some proteins affecting the virulence were detected. In silico analysis of membrane enriched proteins revealed 25 putative outer membrane proteins containing beta-barrel structure and 11 proteins having a secretion signal peptide sequence. Using rabbit and human sera, various immunoreactive proteins were identified from which the 44 kDa uncharacterized protein (A8GP63) has demonstrated a unique detection capability. It positively distinguished the sera of patients with Rickettsialpox from other rickettsiae positive human sera. Conclusion Our proteomic analysis certainly contributed to the lack of knowledge of R. akari pathogenesis. The result obtained may also serve as a guideline for a more accurate diagnosis of rickettsial diseases. The identified 44 kDa uncharacterized protein can be certainly used as a unique marker of rickettsialpox or as a target molecule for the development of more effective treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- František Csicsay
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Gabriela Flores-Ramirez
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Fernando Zuñiga-Navarrete
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Mária Bartošová
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Alena Fučíková
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Hradec Kralove, Hradecká 1285, 500 03, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Pajer
- Military Health Institute, Military Medical Agency, Tychonova 1, CZ-160 00, Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Dresler
- Military Health Institute, Military Medical Agency, Tychonova 1, CZ-160 00, Prague 6, Czech Republic
| | - Ľudovít Škultéty
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic. .,Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Videnska 1083, 142 20, Prague 4, Czech Republic.
| | - Marco Quevedo-Diaz
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
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Lormendez CC, Fernandez-Ruvalcaba M, Adames-Mancebo M, Hernandez-Velazquez VM, Zuñiga-Navarrete F, Flores-Ramirez G, Lina-Garcia L, Peña-Chora G. Mass production of a S-layer protein of Bacillus thuringiensis and its toxicity to the cattle tick Rhipicephalus microplus. Sci Rep 2019; 9:17586. [PMID: 31772196 PMCID: PMC6879537 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-53854-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2019] [Accepted: 11/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The most commonly used biopesticides to control agricultural, forest and insect vectors of human diseases are derived from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, which begins to produce Cry and Cyt insecticidal proteins during the onset of the sporulation phase. Some B. thuringiensis strains also produce S-layer proteins that are toxic to certain pests. S-layer proteins are the most abundant proteins in bacteria and archaea. This proteins' key trait to design high performace processes for mass production is their continuous expression during the vegetative phase, unlike Cry and Cyt, which are restricted to the sporulation phase. In this work, a S-layer protein expressed by the GP543 strain of B. thuringiensis that is toxic to the cattle tick Rhipicephalus microplus was mass produced using the batch culture fermentation technique. In addition, the spore-protein complex showed a mortality rate of 75% with a dose of 300 µg·mL-1 on adult females of R. microplus after fourteen days. The lethal concentration 50 was 69.7 µg·mL-1. The treatment also caused a decrease of 13% in the weight of the mass of oviposited eggs with 200 µg·mL-1 of the spore-protein complex and inhibition of the hatching of eggs from 80 to 92%. Therefore, this could be a good option for controlling this parasite. The advantages of S-layer protein synthesis are focused on the production of a new generation of proteins in pest control. This is the first report on the mass production of an S-layer protein that is responsible for toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caleb C Lormendez
- Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Morelos, Centro de Investigacion en Biotecnologia, Av. Universidad 1001, Colonia Chamilpa, CP 62209, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico
| | - Manuel Fernandez-Ruvalcaba
- Centro Nacional de Investigaciones en Parasitologia Veterinaria INIFAP, Km. 11.5 Carretera Federal Cuernavaca, Cuautla, Col. Progreso, Jiutepec, Morelos, CP 62550, Mexico
| | - Markis Adames-Mancebo
- Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Morelos, Centro de Investigacion en Biotecnologia, Av. Universidad 1001, Colonia Chamilpa, CP 62209, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico
| | - Victor Manuel Hernandez-Velazquez
- Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Morelos, Centro de Investigacion en Biotecnologia, Av. Universidad 1001, Colonia Chamilpa, CP 62209, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico
| | - Fernando Zuñiga-Navarrete
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská Cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Gabriela Flores-Ramirez
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská Cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Laura Lina-Garcia
- Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Morelos, Centro de Investigacion en Biotecnologia, Av. Universidad 1001, Colonia Chamilpa, CP 62209, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico
| | - Guadalupe Peña-Chora
- Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Morelos, Centro de Investigaciones Biologicas, Avenida Universidad 1001, Colonia Chamilpa, CP 62209, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico.
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Flores-Ramirez G, Sallay B, Danchenko M, Lakhneko O, Špitalská E, Skultety L. Comparative proteomics of the vector Dermacentor reticulatus revealed differentially regulated proteins associated with pathogen transmission in response to laboratory infection with Rickettsia slovaca. Parasit Vectors 2019; 12:318. [PMID: 31234913 PMCID: PMC6591964 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-019-3564-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2019] [Accepted: 06/15/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Tick-borne rickettsial diseases are caused by pathogens acquired from hard ticks. In particular, Rickettsia slovaca, a zoonotic infectious bacterium causing tick-borne lymphadenopathy (TIBOLA), is transmitted by the vectors Dermacentor spp. that can be found all over Europe. Although recent studies point out the extreme complexity of bacteria-induced effects in these blood-feeding vectors, the knowledge of individual molecules involved in the preservation and transmission of the pathogen is still limited. System biology tools, including proteomics, may contribute greatly to the understanding of pathogen-tick-host interactions. METHODS Herein, we performed a comparative proteomics study of the tick vector Dermacentor reticulatus that was experimentally infected with the endosymbiotic bacterium R. slovaca. Rickettsia-free ticks, collected in the southern region of Slovakia, were infected with the bacterium by a capillary tube-feeding system, and the dynamics of infection was assessed by quantitative PCR method after 5, 10, 15 and 27 days. RESULTS At the stage of controlled proliferation (at 27 dpi), 33 (from 481 profiled) differentially abundant protein spots were detected on a two-dimensional gel. From the aforementioned protein spots, 21 were successfully identified by tandem mass spectrometry. CONCLUSIONS Although a few discovered proteins were described as having structural or housekeeping functions, the vast majority of the affected proteins were suggested to be essential for tick attachment and feeding on the host, host immune system evasion and defensive response modulation to ensure successful pathogen transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriela Flores-Ramirez
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Balázs Sallay
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Maksym Danchenko
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Olha Lakhneko
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
| | - Eva Špitalská
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
| | - Ludovit Skultety
- Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 05, Bratislava, Slovak Republic. .,Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, v.v.i., Videnska 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic.
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Zúniga-Navarrete F, Flores-Ramirez G, Quevedo-Díaz M, Škultéty L. Counting of viable C. burnetii cells by quantitative reverse transcription PCR using a recombinant plasmid (pCB-dotA) as a standard. Acta Virol 2018; 62:409-414. [PMID: 30472871 DOI: 10.4149/av_2018_409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Coxiella burnetii is an intracellular pathogenic bacterium and etiological agent of Q fever in humans. Recently, the bacterium has been set free from the strictly intracellular condition by successful cultivation in acidified citrate cysteine medium. Here, we report a bacterial cell counting method that allows rapid quantification of the absolute or relative number of live cells of C. burnetii in a high throughput manner. The method utilizes TaqMan-based quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) targeting a single dotA gene for determination of genome equivalent (GE) presented either as DNA or complementary DNA (cDNA) synthesized via reverse transcription. The assay was shown to be specific, sensitive and efficiently reproducible. The quantification was linear over a range of 30 to 3x108 copies. Since there is only one copy of the dotA gene per Coxiella chromosome, the calculated dotA copy numbers can be compared to the number of bacterial cells. Finally, we demonstrated the potential of the method to assess effects of antibiotic on cell viability and to determine the antibiotic-tolerant fraction within a cell population. Keywords: Coxiella burnetii; Q fever; real-time polymerase chain reaction; copy number; antibiotic; axenic media; dotA gene.
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Flores-Ramirez G, Jankovicova B, Bilkova Z, Miernyk JA, Skultety L. Identification of Coxiella burnetii surface-exposed and cell envelope associated proteins using a combined bioinformatics plus proteomics strategy. Proteomics 2014; 14:1868-81. [PMID: 24909302 DOI: 10.1002/pmic.201300338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2013] [Revised: 04/14/2014] [Accepted: 06/02/2014] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
The Gram-negative pathogen Coxiella burnetii is an intracellular bacterium that replicates within the phagolysosomal vacuoles of eukaryotic cells. This pathogen can infect a wide range of hosts, and is the causative agent of Q fever in humans. Surface-exposed and cell envelope associated proteins are thought to be important for both pathogenesis and protective immunity. Herein, we propose a complementary strategy consisting of (i) in silico prediction and (ii) inventory of the proteomic composition using three enrichment approaches coupled with protein identification. The efficiency of classical Triton X-114 phase partitioning was compared with two novel procedures; isolation of alkaline proteins by liquid-phase IEF, and cell surface enzymatic shaving using biofunctional magnetic beads. Of the 2026 protein sequences analyzed using seven distinct bioinformatic algorithms, 157 were predicted to be outer membrane proteins (OMP) and/or lipoproteins (LP). Using the three enrichment protocols, we identified 196 nonredundant proteins, including 39 predicted OMP and/or LP, 32 unknown or poorly characterized proteins, and 17 effectors of the Type IV secretion system. We additionally identified eight proteins with moonlighting activities, and several proteins apparently peripherally associated with integral or anchored OMP and/or LP.
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Flores-Ramirez G, Janecek S, Miernyk JA, Skultety L. In silico biosynthesis of virenose, a methylated deoxy-sugar unique to Coxiella burnetii lipopolysaccharide. Proteome Sci 2012; 10:67. [PMID: 23150954 PMCID: PMC3539893 DOI: 10.1186/1477-5956-10-67] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2012] [Accepted: 11/05/2012] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED BACKGROUND Coxiella burnetii is Gram-negative bacterium responsible for the zoonosis Q-fever. While it has an obligate intracellular growth habit, it is able to persist for extended periods outside of a host cell and can resist environmental conditions that would be lethal to most prokaryotes. It is these extracellular bacteria that are the infectious stage encountered by eukaryotic hosts. The intracellular form has evolved to grow and replicate within acidified parasitophorous vacuoles. The outer coat of C. burnetii comprises a complex lipopolysaccharide (LPS) component that includes the unique methylated-6-deoxyhexose, virenose. Although potentially important as a biomarker for C. burnetii, the pathway for its biosynthesis remains obscure. RESULTS The 6-deoxyhexoses constitute a large family integral to the LPS of many eubacteria. It is believed that precursors of the methylated-deoxyhexoses traverse common early biosynthetic steps as nucleotide-monosaccharides. As a prelude to a full biosynthetic characterization, we present herein the results from bioinformatics-based, proteomics-supported predictions of the pathway for virenose synthesis. Alternative possibilities are considered which include both GDP-mannose and TDP-glucose as precursors. CONCLUSION We propose that biosynthesis of the unique C. burnetii biomarker, virenose, involves an early pathway similar to that of other C-3'-methylated deoxysugars which then diverges depending upon the nucleotide-carrier involved. The alternatives yield either the D- or L-enantiomers of virenose. Both pathways require five enzymatic steps, beginning with either glucose-6-phosphate or mannose-6-phosphate. Our in silico results comprise a model for virenose biosynthesis that can be directly tested. Definition of this pathway should facilitate the development of therapeutic agents useful for treatment of Q fever, as well as allowing improvements in the methods for diagnosing this highly infectious disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriela Flores-Ramirez
- Department of Rickettsiology, Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska cesta, 9, Bratislava, 845 05, Slovakia
| | - Stefan Janecek
- Laboratory of Protein Evolution, Institute of Molecular Biology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, 845 51, Slovakia
| | - Ján A Miernyk
- USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Plant Genetics Research Unit, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA
- Interdisciplinary Plant Group, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA
| | - Ludovit Skultety
- Department of Rickettsiology, Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska cesta, 9, Bratislava, 845 05, Slovakia
- Centre for Molecular Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, 831 01, Slovakia
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Skultety L, Hajduch M, Flores-Ramirez G, Miernyk JA, Ciampor F, Toman R, Sekeyova Z. Proteomic comparison of virulent phase I and avirulent phase II of Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of Q fever. J Proteomics 2011; 74:1974-84. [PMID: 21616182 DOI: 10.1016/j.jprot.2011.05.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2010] [Revised: 04/20/2011] [Accepted: 05/09/2011] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Coxiella burnetii, a category B biological warfare agent, causes multiple outbreaks of the zoonotic disease Q fever world-wide, each year. The virulent phase I and avirulent phase II variants of the Nine Mile RSA 493 and 439 strains of C. burnetii were propagated in embryonated hen eggs and then purified by centrifugation through Renografin gradients. Total protein fractions were isolated from each phase and subjected to analysis by one-dimensional electrophoresis plus tandem mass spectrometry. A total of 235 and 215 non-redundant proteins were unambiguously identified from the phase I and II cells, respectively. Many of these proteins had not been previously reported in proteomic studies of C. burnetii. The newly identified proteins should provide additional insight into the pathogenesis of Q fever. Several of the identified proteins are involved in the biosynthesis and metabolism of components of the extracellular matrix. Forty-four of the proteins have been annotated as having distinct roles in the pathogenesis or survival of C. burnetii within the harsh phagolysosomal environment. We propose that nine enzymes specifically involved with lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis and metabolism, and that are distinctively present in phase I cells, are virulence-associated proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ludovit Skultety
- Institute of Virology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia.
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