title: Opsonic antibodies to Enterococcus faecalis strain 12030 are directed against lipoteichoic acid.
abstract: A teichoic acid (TA)-like polysaccharide in Enterococcus faecalis has previously been shown to induce opsonic antibodies that protect against bacteremia after active and passive immunization. Here we present new data providing a corrected structure of the antigen and the epitope against which the opsonic antibodies are directed. Capsular polysaccharide isolated from E. faecalis strain 12030 by enzymatic digestion of peptidoglycan and chromatography (enzyme-TA) was compared with lipoteichoic acid (LTA) extracted using butanol and purified by hydrophobic-interaction chromatography (BuOH-LTA). Structural determinations were carried out by chemical analysis and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Antibody specificity was assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and the opsonophagocytosis assay. After alanine ester hydrolysis, there was structural identity between enzyme-TA and BuOH-LTA of the TA-parts of the two molecules. The basic enterococcal LTA structure was confirmed: 1,3-poly(glycerol phosphate) nonstoichiometrically substituted at position C-2 of the glycerol residues with d-Ala and kojibiose. We also detected a novel substituent at position C-2, [D-Ala-->6]-alpha-D-Glcp-(1-->2-[D-Ala-->6]-alpha-D-Glcp-1-->). Antiserum raised against enzyme-TA bound equally well to BuOH-LTA and dealanylated BuOH-LTA as to the originally described enzyme-TA antigen. BuOH-LTA was a potent inhibitor of opsonophagocytic killing by the antiserum to enzyme-TA. Immunization with antibiotic-killed whole bacterial cells did not induce a significant proportion of antibodies directed against alanylated epitopes on the TA, and opsonic activity was inhibited completely by both alanylated and dealanylated BuOH-LTA. In summary, the E. faecalis strain 12030 enzyme-TA is structurally and immunologically identical to dealanylated LTA. Opsonic antibodies to E. faecalis 12030 are directed predominantly to nonalanylated epitopes on the LTA molecule.
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Disease, Department of Medicine, University Hospital Freiburg, Hugstetter Str. 55, 79106 Freiburg, Germany. christian.theilacker@uniklinik-freiburg.de
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Theilacker
authors.forename: Zbigniew
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Kaczynski
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kropec
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fabretti
authors.forename: Tatjana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sange
authors.forename: Otto
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Holst
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Huebner
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology*; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D016667:Bacterial Capsules / Q000276:immunology; D002240:Carbohydrate Sequence; D013293:Enterococcus faecalis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D007106:Immune Sera / Q000276:immunology; D016056:Immunodominant Epitopes / Q000276:immunology; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009895:Opsonin Proteins / Q000276:immunology*; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D011817:Rabbits; D013682:Teichoic Acids / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D007106:Immune Sera; D016056:Immunodominant Epitopes; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D009895:Opsonin Proteins; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial; D013682:Teichoic Acids; C009900:lipoteichoic acid