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Infection and Immunity, February 2001, p. 787-793, Vol. 69, No. 2
Vaccines Section, Eijkman-Winkler Institute
for Microbiology, Infectious Diseases, and Inflammation, Utrecht
University Hospital, 3584 CX Utrecht,1 and
Department of Bio-Organic Chemistry, Bijvoet Center,
Utrecht University, 3584 CH Utrecht,2 The
Netherlands
Received 8 August 2000/Returned for modification 6 September
2000/Accepted 31 October 2000
The immunogenicity and protective capacity of Streptococcus
pneumoniae 6B capsular polysaccharide (PS)-derived synthetic
phosphate-containing disaccharide (Rha-ribitol-P-),
trisaccharide (ribitol-P-Gal-Glc-), and tetrasaccharide
(Rha-ribitol-P-Gal-Glc-)-protein conjugates in rabbits and
mice were studied. In rabbits, all saccharides conjugated to keyhole
limpet hemocyanin (KLH) evoked high levels of pneumococcal (Pn) type 6B
antibodies that facilitated type-specific phagocytosis. Unlike the
disaccharide rabbit antisera, tri- and tetrasaccharide rabbit antisera
also reacted with 6A PS in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
and promoted phagocytosis of 6A pneumococci. All these rabbit antisera
passively protected mice against a Pn 6B challenge. The disaccharide
conjugate-induced antiserum, however, failed to protect mice against a
6A challenge. In mice, phagocytic and protective anti-Pn 6B antibodies
were only induced by the tetrasaccharide conjugate and not by PS 6B or
PS 6B-protein conjugates. These antibodies did not cross-react with 6A
PS in ELISA and were unable to phagocytize 6A pneumococci. In
conclusion, the disaccharide and tetrasaccharide conjugates already
contain epitopes capable of inducing 6B-specific, fully protective
antibodies in rabbits and mice, respectively.
0019-9567/01/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/IAI.69.2.787-793.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Synthetic 6B Di-, Tri-, and Tetrasaccharide-Protein
Conjugates Contain Pneumococcal Type 6A and 6B Common and 6B- Specific
Epitopes That Elicit Protective Antibodies in Mice
*
Corresponding author. Present address: GBF, Section
Microbiology D209, D-38124 Braunschweig, Germany. Phone: 0049 531 6181706. Fax: 0049 531 6181708. E-mail: JWO{at}GBF.de.
Present address: Intervet International, Boxmeer, The Netherlands.
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