title: Cloning and nucleotide sequence of the Streptococcus pneumoniae hyaluronidase gene and purification of the enzyme from recombinant Escherichia coli.
abstract: A gene bank of Sau3A1-generated Streptococcus pneumoniae type 23 DNA fragments was constructed in Escherichia coli K-12 with the low-copy-number cosmid vector pOU61cos. Clone lysates were screened by immunoblotting using a mouse antiserum raised against a crude pneumococcal hyaluronidase preparation. One immunoreactive clone was isolated, and it produced high level of hyaluronidase activity. This clone contained a recombinant cosmid (designated pJCP800) with an approximately 35-kb DNA insert, and the putative hyaluronidase coding sequence was subcloned into pBluescript SK as a 3.8-kb PstI-ClaI fragment (designated pJCP802). The complete nucleotide sequence of this insert was determined. The region included an open reading frame sufficient to encode a polypeptide with an M(r) of 107,751. An active hyaluronidase with an M(r) of approximately 89,000 was purified to homogeneity from E. coli DH5 alpha(pJCP802). N-terminal amino acid sequence analysis of the purified protein suggested that translation initiation was occurring primarily at a TTG codon within the major open reading frame. However, immunoblot analysis using antiserum raised against the purified 89-kDa hyaluronidase indicated that E. coli DH5 alpha(pJCP802) also expressed the 107-kDa form of the enzyme. This antiserum labelled a 107-kDa protein in partially purified hyaluronidase preparations from S. pneumoniae. The hyaluronidase activity in this pneumococcal extract was also neutralized by the antiserum.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Women's and Children's Hospital, North Adelaide, Australia.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Berry
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Lock
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: D P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Rajan
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hansman
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Paton
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D015153:Blotting, Western; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics; D006821:Hyaluronoglucosaminidase / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013296:Streptococcus pneumoniae / Q000201:enzymology*
chemical_list: D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D004247:DNA; D006821:Hyaluronoglucosaminidase