This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by McDowell, J. V.
Right arrow Articles by Marconi, R. T.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by McDowell, J. V.
Right arrow Articles by Marconi, R. T.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Infection and Immunity, November 2005, p. 7126-7132, Vol. 73, No. 11
0019-9567/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.73.11.7126-7132.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Demonstration of Factor H-Like Protein 1 Binding to Treponema denticola, a Pathogen Associated with Periodontal Disease in Humans

John V. McDowell,1 Justin Lankford,1 Lola Stamm,3 Tania Sadlon,4 David L. Gordon,4 and Richard T. Marconi1,2*

Department of Microbiology and Immunology,1 Center for the Study of Biological Complexity, Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia 23298-0678,2 Department of Epidemiology, Infectious Diseases Program, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina,3 Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Flinders Medical Centre, Bedford Park, South Australia, Australia4

Received 16 June 2005/ Returned for modification 29 July 2005/ Accepted 5 August 2005

Treponema denticola is an important contributor to periodontal disease. In this study we investigated the ability of T. denticola to bind the complement regulatory proteins factor H and factor H-like protein 1 (FHL-1). The binding of these proteins has been demonstrated to facilitate evasion of the alternative complement cascade and/or to play a role in adherence and invasion. Here we demonstrate that T. denticola specifically binds FHL-1 via a 14-kDa, surface-exposed protein that we designated FhbB. Consistent with its FHL-1 binding specificity, FhbB binds only to factor H recombinant fragments spanning short consensus repeats (SCRs) 1 to 7 (H7 construct) and not to SCR constructs spanning SCRs 8 to 15 and 16 to 20. Binding of H7 to FhbB was inhibited by heparin. The specific involvement of SCR 7 in the interaction was demonstrated using an H7 mutant (H7AB) in which specific charged residues in SCR 7 were replaced by alanine. This construct lost FhbB binding ability. Analyses of the ability of FHL-1 bound to the surface of T. denticola to serve as a cofactor for factor I-mediated cleavage of C3b revealed that C3b is cleaved in an FHL-1/factor I-independent manner, perhaps by an unidentified protease. Based on the data presented here, we hypothesize that the primary function of FHL-1 binding by T. denticola might be to facilitate adherence to FHL-1 present on anchorage-dependent cells and in the extracellular matrix.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, P.O. Box 980678, Richmond, VA 23298-0678. Phone: (804) 828-3779. Fax: (804) 828-9946. E-mail: rmarconi{at}hsc.vcu.edu.

Editor: D. L. Burns

Infection and Immunity, November 2005, p. 7126-7132, Vol. 73, No. 11
0019-9567/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.73.11.7126-7132.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Barbosa, A. S., Abreu, P. A. E., Vasconcellos, S. A., Morais, Z. M., Goncales, A. P., Silva, A. S., Daha, M. R., Isaac, L. (2009). Immune Evasion of Leptospira Species by Acquisition of Human Complement Regulator C4BP. Infect. Immun. 77: 1137-1143 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hovis, K. M., Freedman, J. C., Zhang, H., Forbes, J. L., Marconi, R. T. (2008). Identification of an Antiparallel Coiled-Coil/Loop Domain Required for Ligand Binding by the Borrelia hermsii FhbA Protein: Additional Evidence for the Role of FhbA in the Host-Pathogen Interaction. Infect. Immun. 76: 2113-2122 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Ormsby, R. J., Ranganathan, S., Tong, J. C., Griggs, K. M., Dimasi, D. P., Hewitt, A. W., Burdon, K. P., Craig, J. E., Hoh, J., Gordon, D. L. (2008). Functional and Structural Implications of the Complement Factor H Y402H Polymorphism Associated with Age-Related Macular Degeneration. IOVS 49: 1763-1770 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Behnsen, J., Hartmann, A., Schmaler, J., Gehrke, A., Brakhage, A. A., Zipfel, P. F. (2008). The Opportunistic Human Pathogenic Fungus Aspergillus fumigatus Evades the Host Complement System. Infect. Immun. 76: 820-827 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • McDowell, J. V., Frederick, J., Stamm, L., Marconi, R. T. (2007). Identification of the Gene Encoding the FhbB Protein of Treponema denticola, a Highly Unique Factor H-Like Protein 1 Binding Protein. Infect. Immun. 75: 1050-1054 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • McDowell, J. V., Hovis, K. M., Zhang, H., Tran, E., Lankford, J., Marconi, R. T. (2006). Evidence that the BBA68 Protein (BbCRASP-1) of the Lyme Disease Spirochetes Does Not Contribute to Factor H-Mediated Immune Evasion in Humans and Other Animals.. Infect. Immun. 74: 3030-3034 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hovis, K. M., Jones, J. P., Sadlon, T., Raval, G., Gordon, D. L., Marconi, R. T. (2006). Molecular Analyses of the Interaction of Borrelia hermsii FhbA with the Complement Regulatory Proteins Factor H and Factor H-Like Protein 1. Infect. Immun. 74: 2007-2014 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hovis, K. M., Tran, E., Sundy, C. M., Buckles, E., McDowell, J. V., Marconi, R. T. (2006). Selective Binding of Borrelia burgdorferi OspE Paralogs to Factor H and Serum Proteins from Diverse Animals: Possible Expansion of the Role of OspE in Lyme Disease Pathogenesis. Infect. Immun. 74: 1967-1972 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»