title: Genetic evidence for the relationship of Porphyromonas gingivalis cysteine protease and hemagglutinin activities.
abstract: Cysteine protease and hemagglutinin activities of Porphyromonas gingivalis have been implicated as virulence factors in periodontitis. In addition, a close structural relationship between these factors has been suggested. In order to examine the molecular basis for such a relationship, we constructed an isogenic mutant, G-102, of P. gingivalis 381 deficient in Arg-gingipain cysteine protease activity. The mutant displayed not only reduced protease activity but also significantly reduced hemagglutination activity compared with the wild-type strain. Therefore, this investigation provided genetic evidence for the recently proposed structural relationship between Arg-gingipain and the hemagglutinin activity of P. gingivalis strains.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Biology, State University of New York, Buffalo, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoneda
authors.forename: H K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Kuramitsu
mesh_terms: D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D015139:Blotting, Southern; D015153:Blotting, Western; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000235:genetics*; D015342:DNA Probes; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics; D015870:Gene Expression; D005798:Genes, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D000080867:Gingipain Cysteine Endopeptidases; D006384:Hemagglutination / Q000235:genetics; D006388:Hemagglutinins / Q000235:genetics*; D016254:Mutagenesis, Insertional; D010957:Plasmids; D016966:Porphyromonas gingivalis / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000472:pathogenicity; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D014774:Virulence
chemical_list: D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D015342:DNA Probes; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D000080867:Gingipain Cysteine Endopeptidases; D006388:Hemagglutinins; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases