title: Genetic variation and cross-reactivity of Clostridium septicum alpha-toxin.
abstract: Clostridium septicum alpha-toxin genes were sequenced with the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products amplified from DNAs of 25 C. septicum strains, and were classified into 10 patterns. Alpha-toxins were purified from the culture supernatant of four C. septicum strains (strains No. 44, Kagoshima 8, Mie and Tokachi) which were specially chosen from patterns of the deduced amino acid sequences. The molecular weights of the alpha-toxins were not different according to sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) analysis. However, the isoelectric points between the alpha-toxins of No. 44 and Tokachi strains differed markedly. Cross-neutralization tests were performed with purified alpha-toxins and antitoxins in mice and in Vero cells. Each antitoxin showed roughly the same titers against the four alpha-toxins in mice and completely identical titers against these in Vero cells. Calves immunized with toxoid prepared from the culture supernatant of No.44 strain were challenged by exposure to spores of Mie strain. The toxoid conferred protection against the challenge in calves. From these results, although genetic variation has been observed within the C. septicum alpha-toxin gene, C. septicum strains toxoid of strain No.44 induces protective immunity against exposure to C. septicum that produce other subtypes of alpha-toxin containing several different amino acid residues.
authors.affiliation: Kyoto Biken Laboratories Inc., Kyoto 611-0041, Japan. kblboad@kyotobiken.co.jp
authors.forename: Katsuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Amimoto
authors.forename: Yoshimasa
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.forename: Shin-ichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fukuyama
authors.forename: Yutaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tamura
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000992:Antitoxins; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000633:toxicity; D001483:Base Sequence; D002417:Cattle; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D052557:Clostridium septicum / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D003429:Cross Reactions; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000737:chemistry; D014644:Genetic Variation / Q000235:genetics*; D007928:Lethal Dose 50; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009500:Neutralization Tests / Q000379:methods; D010802:Phylogeny; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014121:Toxoids / Q000276:immunology; D014709:Vero Cells
chemical_list: D000992:Antitoxins; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D017931:DNA Primers; D014121:Toxoids; C064270:hemolytic toxin, Clostridium septicum