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Infection and Immunity, February 2007, p. 1045-1049, Vol. 75, No. 2
0019-9567/07/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/IAI.01177-06
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of WisconsinMadison, Madison, Wisconsin,1 Center for Molecular Medicine and Infectious Diseases, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia2
Received 26 July 2006/ Returned for modification 13 September 2006/ Accepted 9 November 2006
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The ability of H. somni to modify its lipooligosaccharide (LOS) composition and structure is thought to play an important role in its virulence. H. somni can incorporate sialic acid into the outer core of the LOS molecule, and this event has been shown to be critical for resistance to serum-mediated killing (14). It has been reported that some strains of H. somni that do not incorporate sialic acid are unable to produce disease (5). Another modification is the addition of phosphorylcholine (ChoP) to the outer core of the LOS (12).
H. somni exhibits extensive intrastrain variability in ChoP incorporation into the LOS molecule (12). The possible contribution of ChoP to H. somni pathogenesis is unknown. For other species of bacteria, ChoP can be incorporated into bacterial structures such as fibrillar proteins and cell wall components that are important for bacterial adherence to host cells. For example, the expression of ChoP by Streptococcus pneumoniae has been reported to contribute to pneumococcal adherence and invasion in the lung (6, 30) and the brain (20). Similarly, the expression of ChoP on the LOS of Haemophilus influenzae contributes to its binding and internalization by human epithelial cells (27, 28). This adherence was demonstrated to be due to an interaction between ChoP expressed on LOS and the platelet-activating factor (PAF) receptor on epithelial cells. ChoP has also been found in Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, which facilitates binding to the PAF receptor on human vascular endothelial cells, followed by internalization of the bacteria (7, 23, 24). ChoP has also been detected in Bacillus spp. and Clostridium spp., and the lipopolysaccharide of Escherichia coli O26:B6 was found to activate human platelets through a PAF receptor-dependent pathway (9, 19).
Our laboratory has previously reported that H. somni and its LOS can activate bovine platelets (16). We also found that H. somni, but not its LOS, could induce platelet aggregation. The mechanism by which H. somni induces platelet aggregation is unknown. It has previously been demonstrated that endotoxin and bacteria can adhere to and activate platelets from several different mammalian species (2, 11, 18, 21, 22, 31-33). For this study, we sought to investigate the interaction between H. somni and bovine platelets and determine if bacterial expression of ChoP affects platelet activation.
We first wanted to ascertain whether platelet aggregation was induced by ChoP-expressing H. somni cells. Using colony immunoblotting with an anti-phosphorylcholine antibody (15), two H. somni variants of strain 7735 were selected for either high or low expression of ChoP. These populations were enriched through selective passage in culture. Bovine platelets (2.5 x 108 platelets) (isolation procedures were described previously [16]) were incubated with one of the two H. somni variants (multiplicity of infection [MOI] of 5:1) for 10 min in a Chronolog aggregometer. As a positive control, platelets were treated with PAF (106 M; Calbiochem) to induce irreversible aggregation within 5 min. It was found that ChoP+ H. somni induced platelet aggregation, while ChoP H. somni did not (Fig. 1A and B). ChoP+ H. somni consistently induced approximately 15% aggregation, which was not reversible within a 30-min incubation period (data not shown). Upon microscopic examination, platelet aggregates could be observed following incubation with ChoP+ but not with ChoP H. somni (Fig. 1C and D). In addition, we observed ChoP+ H. somni within bovine platelet aggregates. Pretreatment of ChoP+ H. somni with polymyxin B (10 µg/ml; Sigma) for 10 min resulted in a modest decrease in the ability of H. somni to induce aggregation (Fig. 1E).
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FIG. 1. ChoP+
but not ChoP H. somni induces bovine
platelet aggregation. Platelets (500 µl, 2.5 x
108 platelets/ml) were placed in siliconized glass cuvettes
and incubated with ChoP+ or ChoP
H. somni (MOI of 5:1) or with PAF (106 M)
as a positive control. Platelet aggregation was measured for 10 min
using the turbidimetric method in a Chrono-Log Model 560-Ca Dual Sample
Lumi-Ionized Calcium aggregometer, and the percent aggregation was
calculated using AGGRO/LINK software. The aggregation plot in A is a
representative experiment of four separate experiments that were
performed. The data in B illustrate the means ± standard errors
of the means (SEM) of four separate experiments showing the percent
aggregation induced at 10 min (*, P < 0.05
compared to ChoP+ H. somni-treated
platelets). For some aggregation experiments, platelets were removed
from the cuvette and transferred onto glass coverslips using a Cytospin
centrifuge before being fixed and stained with Diff-Quick. These
platelets were then observed by light microscopy for the presence
platelet-bacterium aggregates (C and D). We observed such aggregates in
the presence of ChoP+ but not
ChoP H. somni. Preincubation of
ChoP+ H. somni for 10 min with polymyxin B
(PB) (10 µg/ml) inhibited platelet aggregation (E). These data
represent the means ± SEM of four separate experiments
(*, P < 0.05 compared to
ChoP+-treated platelets). PBS, phosphate-buffered
saline.
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FIG. 2. Platelet
aggregation is inhibited by the PAF receptor antagonist WEB 2170.
Platelets (500 µl, 2.5 x 108 platelets/ml)
were pretreated for 10 min with the PAF receptor antagonist WEB 2170
(10 µg/ml) or the PAF synthesis inhibitor AACOCF (10
µM) or cPLA (10 µM) before incubation with
ChoP+ H. somni (MOI of 5:1). Platelet
aggregation was then measured as described in the legend of Fig.
1. The data represent the
means ± SEM of four separate experiments (*, P
< 0.05 compared to platelets incubated with
ChoP+ H. somni
alone).
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FIG. 3. H.
somni-induced platelet activation is independent of PAF receptor
signaling. Bovine platelets (2.5 x 108) were
incubated for 10 min at 37°C with ChoP+ or
ChoP H. somni (MOI of 5:1) or PAF
(107 M). The platelets were then fixed in
paraformaldehyde (0.4% final volume) and stained with antibodies for
P-selectin or fibrinogen before being analyzed by flow
cytometry. The results reflect the means± SEM of percent positive platelets from
at least three separate experiments. (A) Platelets
preincubated with the PAF receptor antagonist WEB 2170 or the
phospholipase Cß inhibitor D609 expressed significantly less
P-selectin after PAF stimulation than platelets treated with PAF alone
(*, P < 0.05 compared to untreated platelets).
(B) Pretreatment of platelets with WEB 2170 or D609 resulted
in a modest decrease in P-selection expression in platelets challenged
with H. somni; however, this decrease was not
significant (P > 0.05 compared to
platelets incubated with ChoP+ H. somni
alone). Panel C illustrates that platelets incubated with either
ChoP+ or ChoP H. somni
significantly up-regulated platelet P-selectin expression. However,
neither strain was able to induce significant levels of platelet
fibrinogen binding compared to untreated platelets (*,
P < 0.05 compared to untreated
platelets).
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FIG. 4. Transmission
electron microscopy of platelets activated by H. somni.
Platelets (500 µl, 2.5 x 108 platelets/ml)
were placed in siliconized glass cuvettes and incubated with
ChoP+ or ChoP H. somni
(MOI of 5:1) in a Chrono-Log Model 560-Ca Dual Sample Lumi-Ionized
Calcium aggregometer. After a 10-min incubation, the platelet-rich
plasma was fixed with a 25% volume of Karnovsky's solution (2.5%
glutaraldehyde, 4% paraformaldehyde) for 10 min at room temperature and
then centrifuged onto glass coverslips at 1,500 x g for 10 min
to facilitate TEM processing. (A) Unactivated bovine
platelets exhibit the typical discoid or "plate"
morphology. (B) Shape change and pseudopod formation but no
aggregate formation by bovine platelets incubated with
ChoP H. somni. (C and D) Aggregates of
bovine platelets incubated with ChoP+ H.
somni. (E and F) Platelets incubated with ChoP+
H. somni at greater magnification, with arrows indicating
areas of attachment between bovine platelets and H. somni.
These results are representative of three separate
experiments.
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Statistical analysis. An unbalanced one-way analysis of variance was used to determine if significant variation existed between group means. Pairwise comparisons of group means were performed using Tukey's test (P < 0.05) with the Prism 4 statistical package (GraphPad, San Diego, CA).
We thank Yongjing Li for help in preparing samples for transmission electron microscopy. WEB 2170 was generously provided by Boehringer-Ingelheim (Ridgefield, CT).
Published ahead of print on 21 November 2006. ![]()
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