title: Identification of a Streptococcus suis 60-kDa heat-shock protein using western blotting.
abstract: This study was initiated to investigate the presence of stress or heat shock proteins in Streptococcus suis. SDS-PAGE and Western blotting using polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies directed against different bacterial heat shock proteins demonstrated cross-reactivity with a protein with an apparent molecular mass of 60 kDa in all S. suis serotypes tested. The 60-kDa cross-reactive protein was present in virulent and avirulent strains of S. suis serotype 2 tested. A rabbit antiserum raised against the 60-kDa S. suis protein recognized the 60-65-kDa heat shock proteins in different Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Finally, the 60-kDa heat shock protein of S. suis was shown to be mostly secreted into the culture supernatant and, to a lesser extent, cell-associated. Growth under heat stress conditions (42 degrees C) increased the expression of the 60-kDa S. suis protein. This protein is, to our knowledge, the first common antigen found in different serotypes of S. suis.
authors.affiliation: Dèpartement de pathologie et microbiologie, Faculté de médecine vétérinaire, Université de Montrèal, Saint-Hyacinthe, Què, Canada.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Benkirane
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Gottschalk
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Dubreuil
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D015153:Blotting, Western / Q000379:methods*; D018834:Chaperonin 60 / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D003429:Cross Reactions; D018869:Heat-Shock Response; D008970:Molecular Weight; D011817:Rabbits; D017011:Streptococcus suis / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology / Q000472:pathogenicity; D014774:Virulence
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D018834:Chaperonin 60