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Infection and Immunity, November 2006, p. 6244-6251, Vol. 74, No. 11
0019-9567/06/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.00827-06
Copyright © 2006, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Antigenic Variation of TprK V Regions Abrogates Specific Antibody Binding in Syphilis{triangledown} ,{dagger}

Rebecca E. LaFond,1 Barbara J. Molini,2 Wesley C. Van Voorhis,1,2 and Sheila A. Lukehart1,2*

Departments of Pathobiology,1 Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington2

Received 22 May 2006/ Returned for modification 25 June 2006/ Accepted 11 August 2006

The tprK gene in the syphilis spirochete, Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum, undergoes antigenic variation in seven variable (V) regions. tprK is highly variable within T. pallidum strains, and a method has been developed to derive clones of T. pallidum that express a single, unique tprK sequence. Rabbits were infected with three different T. pallidum clones or the parent strain from which the clones were derived, and their sera were examined by immunoassay for antibody reactivity against synthetic peptides representing the TprK V regions from each clone. The parent strain expresses many different V region sequences, and infection with this strain induced antibody responses against a wide variety of V regions. In rabbits infected with the Chicago C clone, antibodies developed against all of the V regions except V1, while antibodies developed against only V5, V6, and V7 in Chicago A-infected rabbits. During Chicago B infection, antibodies developed against all of the V regions except V1 and V3. Antibodies were highly specific for the V regions of the infecting clone, and cross-reactivity was rare. The demonstration that the V regions elicit a variant-specific antibody response supports the hypothesis that TprK variants may help organisms to avoid the developing immune response in infected individuals, contributing to the ability of T. pallidum to establish chronic infection.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Medicine, Box 359779, Harborview Medical Center, 325 Ninth Ave., Seattle, WA 98104. Phone: (206) 341-5361. Fax: (206) 341-5363. E-mail: lukehart{at}u.washington.edu.

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 21 August 2006.

Editor: W. A. Petri, Jr.

{dagger} Supplemental material for this article may be found at http://iai.asm.org/.

Infection and Immunity, November 2006, p. 6244-6251, Vol. 74, No. 11
0019-9567/06/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.00827-06
Copyright © 2006, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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