title: Molecular and ultrastructural characterisation of EspA from different enteropathogenic Escherichia coli serotypes.
abstract: Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) encode a type III secretion system located on a pathogenicity island known as the locus for enterocyte effacement. Four proteins are known to be exported by this type III secretion system--EspA, EspB and EspD required for subversion of host cell signal transduction pathways and a translocated intimin receptor protein (Tir) required for intimin-mediated intimate attachment and attaching and effacing lesion formation. The espA gene is located within the locus for enterocyte effacement and the EspA polypeptide from the prototype EPEC strain E2348/69 (O127:H6) has recently been shown to be a component of a filamentous structure involved in bacteria-host cell interaction and locus for enterocyte effacement-encoded protein translocation involved in attaching and effacing lesion formation. In this study we have extended our investigation of EspA to strains belonging to other classical EPEC serotypes. DNA sequencing demonstrated that the espA gene from the different EPEC strains share at least 65% DNA identity. In addition, we detected morphologically and antigenically similar EspA filaments in all but one of the bacterial strains examined including recombinant, non-pathogenic E. coli expressing espA from a cloned locus for enterocyte effacement region (HB101(pCVD462)).
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London, UK.
authors.forename: B C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Neves
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Knutton
authors.forename: L R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Trabulsi
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Sperandio
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Kaper
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dougan
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Frankel
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000472:pathogenicity* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D015870:Gene Expression; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000382:microbiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010957:Plasmids; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; C102051:EspA protein, E coli; D011994:Recombinant Proteins