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Infection and Immunity, November 2002, p. 5924-5930, Vol. 70, No. 11
0019-9567/02/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/IAI.70.11.5924-5930.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Cloning and Molecular Characterization of an Immunogenic LigA Protein of Leptospira interrogans
Raghavan U. M. Palaniappan,1 Yung-Fu Chang,1* S. S. D. Jusuf,2 S. Artiushin,2 John F. Timoney,2 Sean P. McDonough,1 Steve C. Barr,1 Thomas J. Divers,1 Kenneth W. Simpson,1 Patrick L. McDonough,1 and Hussni O. Mohammed1
College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853,1
Gluck Equine Research Center, Department of Veterinary Science, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 405462
Received 16 January 2002/
Returned for modification 7 March 2002/
Accepted 24 July 2002
A clone expressing a novel immunoreactive leptospiral immunoglobulin-like protein A of 130 kDa (LigA) from Leptospira interrogans serovar pomona type kennewicki was isolated by screening a genomic DNA library with serum from a mare that had recently aborted due to leptospiral infection. LigA is encoded by an open reading frame of 3,675 bp, and the deduced amino acid sequence consists of a series of 90-amino-acid tandem repeats. A search of the NCBI database found that homology of the LigA repeat region was limited to an immunoglobulin-like domain of the bacterial intimin binding protein of Escherichia coli, the cell adhesion domain of Clostridium acetobutylicum, and the invasin of Yersinia pestis. Secondary structure prediction analysis indicates that LigA consists mostly of beta sheets with a few alpha-helical regions. No LigA was detectable by immunoblot analysis of lysates of the leptospires grown in vitro at 30°C or when cultures were shifted to 37°C. Strikingly, immunohistochemistry on kidney from leptospira-infected hamsters demonstrated LigA expression. These findings suggest that LigA is specifically induced only in vivo. Sera from horses, which aborted as a result of natural Leptospira infection, strongly recognize LigA. LigA is the first leptospiral protein described to have 12 tandem repeats and is also the first to be expressed only during infection. Thus, LigA may have value in serodiagnosis or as a protective immunogen in novel vaccines.
* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853. Phone: (607) 253-3675. Fax: (607) 253-3943. E-mail:
yc42{at}cornell.edu.
Editor: D. L. Burns
Infection and Immunity, November 2002, p. 5924-5930, Vol. 70, No. 11
0019-9567/02/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/IAI.70.11.5924-5930.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
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