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Site-specific O-glycosylation on the MUC2 mucin protein inhibits cleavage by the Porphyromonas gingivalis secreted cysteine protease (RgpB).

ABSTRACT: The colonic epithelial surface is protected by an inner mucus layer that the commensal microflora cannot penetrate. We previously demonstrated that Entamoeba histolytica secretes a protease capable of dissolving this layer that is required for parasite penetration. Here, we asked whether there are bacteria that can secrete similar proteases. We screened bacterial culture supernatants for such activity using recombinant fragments of the MUC2 mucin, the major structural component, and the only gel-forming mucin in the colonic mucus. MUC2 has two central heavily O-glycosylated mucin domains that are protease-resistant and has cysteine-rich N and C termini responsible for polymerization. Culture supernatants of Porphyromonas gingivalis, a bacterium that secretes proteases responsible for periodontitis, cleaved the MUC2 C-terminal region, whereas the N-terminal region was unaffected. The active enzyme was isolated and identified as Arg-gingipain B (RgpB). Two cleavage sites were localized to IR?TT and NR?QA. IR?TT cleavage will disrupt the MUC2 polymers. Because this site has two potential O-glycosylation sites, we tested whether recombinant GalNAc-transferases (GalNAc-Ts) could glycosylate a synthetic peptide covering the IRTT sequence. Only GalNAc-T3 was able to glycosylate the second Thr in IRTT, rendering the sequence resistant to cleavage by RgpB. Furthermore, when GalNAc-T3 was expressed in CHO cells expressing the MUC2 C terminus, the second threonine was glycosylated, and the protein became resistant to RgpB cleavage. These findings suggest that bacteria can produce proteases capable of dissolving the inner protective mucus layer by specific cleavages in the MUC2 mucin and that this cleavage can be modulated by site-specific O-glycosylation.

SUBMITTER: van der Post S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3656315 | biostudies-literature | 2013 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Site-specific O-glycosylation on the MUC2 mucin protein inhibits cleavage by the Porphyromonas gingivalis secreted cysteine protease (RgpB).

van der Post Sjoerd S Subramani Durai B DB Bäckström Malin M Johansson Malin E V MEV Vester-Christensen Malene B MB Mandel Ulla U Bennett Eric P EP Clausen Henrik H Dahlén Gunnar G Sroka Aneta A Potempa Jan J Hansson Gunnar C GC

The Journal of biological chemistry 20130401 20

The colonic epithelial surface is protected by an inner mucus layer that the commensal microflora cannot penetrate. We previously demonstrated that Entamoeba histolytica secretes a protease capable of dissolving this layer that is required for parasite penetration. Here, we asked whether there are bacteria that can secrete similar proteases. We screened bacterial culture supernatants for such activity using recombinant fragments of the MUC2 mucin, the major structural component, and the only gel ...[more]

PMID: 23546879

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Project description:Chronic periodontitis is an inflammatory disease caused by the formation of oral microbial biofilms. Periodontitis is associated with general health and not only oral diseases. Porphyromonas gingivalis is a well-known keystone pathogen for periodontitis and is associated with several systemic diseases, such as diabetes mellitus and Alzheimer's disease. We previously developed a system for screening periodontitis using P. gingivalis-specific serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with a sensitivity of 0.774 and a specificity of 0.586 and an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.708. However, the antigens elicited non-specific responses, since they were obtained from whole extracts of sonicated cultured bacteria. The purpose of this study was to identify antigens ideal for a sensitive and specific serum test. We identified the specific antigens using immunoaffinity columns immobilized with IgG antibodies from periodontitis patients. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry identified 29 antigens from the elutes. Recombinant proteins for these candidates were synthesized using the wheat germ cell-free translation system and screened by dot blot analysis with serum from the columns. Three of the 16 candidates that reacted showed strongest affinities upon dot blot analysis; they included outer membrane protein 28, cysteine proteases, lysine gingipain Kgp, and arginine gingipain RgpA. Outer membrane protein 28 was not suitable for screening P. gingivalis infection because of its high false-negative rates. Kgp and RgpA were unstable antigens since they underwent self-digestion. They were made stable by substituting the active cysteine residues in Kgp and RgpA with alanine using site-directed mutagenesis. Using the modified antigens, we demonstrated that the patient serum IgG level against RgpA was the highest among all the antigens expressed in P. gingivalis. Moreover, the N-terminus of recombinant RgpA was excellent in differentiating between diseased and non-diseased states (with sensitivity of 0.85, specificity of 0.9, and area under the curve of 0.915). Although dot blot analysis was the only experiment used, the N-terminus of RgpA is an excellent antigen to immunologically test for P. gingivalis infection, especially for estimating the risks for periodontitis-associated systemic diseases. In conclusion, we have developed a P. gingivalis antigen for screening periodontitis.

Project description:Extracellular Arg-x- and Lys-x-specific cysteine proteinases are considered important virulence factors and pathogenic markers for Porphyromonas gingivalis, a bacterium implicated as a major etiological agent of chronic periodontitis. Three genes. rgpA, rgpB, and kgp, encode an Arg-x-specific proteinase and adhesins (RgpA), an Arg-x-specific proteinase (RgpB), and a Lys-x-specific proteinase and adhesins (Kgp), respectively. The contribution to pathogenicity of each of the proteinase genes of P. gingivalis W50 was investigated in a murine lesion model using isogenic mutants lacking RgpA, RgpB, and Kgp. Whole-cell Arg-x-specific proteolytic activity of both the RgpA(-) and RgpB(-) isogenic mutants was significantly reduced (3- to 4-fold) relative to that of the wild-type W50. However, for the Kgp(-) isogenic mutant, whole-cell Arg-x activity was similar to that of the wild-type strain. Whole-cell Lys-x proteolytic activity of the RgpA(-) and RgpB(-) mutants was not significantly different from that of wild-type W50, whereas the Kgp(-) mutant was devoid of Lys-x whole-cell proteolytic activity. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and Western blot analysis using proteinase-specific antibodies of cell sonicates of the wild-type and mutant strains showed that the proteinase catalytic domain of each of the mutants was not expressed. This analysis further showed that RgpB appeared as 72- and 80-kDa bands, and the catalytic domains of RgpA and Kgp appeared as processed 45-kDa and 48-kDa bands, respectively. In the murine lesion model, mice were challenged with three doses of each mutant and wild-type strain. At the lower dose (3.0 x 10(9) viable-cells), no lesions were recorded for each of the mutants, whereas wild-type W50 induced large ulcerative lesions. At a dose of 6.0 x 10(9) viable-cells, all the mice challenged with the wild-type strain died, whereas mice challenged with the RgpA(-) and RgpB(-) isogenic mutants did not die but developed lesions. Mice challenged with the Kgp(-) isogenic mutant at this dose did not develop lesions. At a 1.2 x 10(10) viable-cell dose, only 40% of mice challenged with the Kgp(-) mutant developed lesions, and these lesions were significantly smaller than lesions induced by the wild-type strain at the 3.0 x 10(9) viable-cell dose. All the mice challenged with the RgpA(-) mutant died at the 1.2 x 10(10) viable-cell dose, whereas only 20% died when challenged with the RgpB(-) mutant at this dose. Wild-type phenotype was restored to the RgpB(-) mutant by complementation with plasmid pNJR12::rgpB containing the rgpB gene. There was no difference between the pNJR12::rgpB-complemented RgpB(-) mutant and the wild-type W50 strain in whole-cell Arg-x activity, protein profile, or virulence in the murine lesion model. These results show that the three proteinases, RgpA, RgpB, and Kgp, all contributed to virulence of P. gingivalis W50 in the murine lesion model and that the order in which they contributed was Kgp >> RgpB > or = RgpA.

Dataset Information

Site-specific O-glycosylation on the MUC2 mucin protein inhibits cleavage by the Porphyromonas gingivalis secreted cysteine protease (RgpB).

Publications

Site-specific O-glycosylation on the MUC2 mucin protein inhibits cleavage by the Porphyromonas gingivalis secreted cysteine protease (RgpB).

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