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Infect Immun, February 1998, p. 406-417, Vol. 66, No. 2
0019-9567/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

The Fimbria Gene Cluster of Nonencapsulated Haemophilus influenzae

Forien Geluk,1 Paul P. Eijk,1 S. Marieke van Ham,1,dagger Henk M. Jansen,2 and Loek van Alphen1,*

Departments of Medical Microbiology1 and Pulmonology,2 Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Received 20 March 1997/Returned for modification 16 June 1997/Accepted 17 November 1997

The occurrence of fimbria gene clusters in nonencapsulated Haemophilus influenzae strains from chronic bronchitis patients (n = 58), patients with acute otitis media (n = 13), and healthy carriers (n = 12) was determined by DNA hybridization and PCR, based on sequences of fimbriate H. influenzae type b. Although an average of 18% of all nonencapsulated strains had a fimbria gene cluster consisting of hifA to hifE inserted in the chromosome between purE and pepN, differences in the frequency of fimbria cluster-positive strains were observed, depending on the source of isolates. The compositions of the fimbria gene clusters of seven strains from chronic bronchitis patients and one strain from an otitis media patient were analyzed in more detail. After enrichment for fimbria expression, the promoter of the gene cluster contained 10 TA repeats (n = 2), leading to optimal positioning between the -10 and -35 promoter regions. The promoter regions of five fimbria-negative strains were sequenced; four were found to have nine TA repeats, and one had only four TA repeats. The protein sequence of three ganglioside GM1-specific HifA adhesins consisted of conserved regions intermingled with regions of sequence diversity. hifA appeared to be flanked by intergenic regions that varied between strains and contained both direct and inverted DNA repeats. Since noncoding DNA between hifA and purE has not been found in H. influenzae type b, these DNA sequences are probably not essential for fimbria expression. An analysis of strains lacking the gene cluster revealed the presence of similar sequences in 13 of 15 strains from chronic bronchitis patients, 5 of 5 strains from otitis media patients, and 3 of 5 strains from healthy carriers. The lengths of these intergenic regions were the same for multiple isolates of strains obtained during persistent infections. The presence or absence and the composition of the fimbria gene cluster and other sequences between the flanking genes purE and pepN suggest that the fimbria gene cluster was originally contained on a mobile element.

* Corresponding author. Present address: Laboratory for Vaccine Development and Mechanisms of Immunity, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, P.O. Box 1, NL-3720 BA Bilthoven, The Netherlands. Phone: 31-30-2742701. Fax: 31-30-2744429. E-mail: Loek.van.ALPHEN{at}RIVM.NL.

dagger Present address: Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.




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