Structural and molecular insights into novel surface-exposed mucus adhesins from Lactobacillus reuteri human strains.

The mucus layer covering the gastrointestinal tract is the first point of contact of the intestinal microbiota with the host. Cell surface macromolecules are critical for adherence of commensal bacteria to mucus but structural information is scarce. Here we report the first molecular and structural characterization of a novel cell-surface protein, Lar_0958 from Lactobacillus reuteri JCM 1112(T) , mediating adhesion of L. reuteri human strains to mucus. Lar_0958 is a modular protein of 133 kDa containing six repeat domains, an N-terminal signal sequence and a C-terminal anchoring motif (LPXTG). Lar_0958 homologues are expressed on the cell-surface of L. reuteri human strains, as shown by flow-cytometry and immunogold microscopy. Adhesion of human L. reuteri strains to mucus in vitro was significantly reduced in the presence of an anti-Lar_0958 antibody and Lar_0958 contribution to adhesion was further confirmed using a L. reuteri ATCC PTA 6475 lar_0958 KO mutant (6475-KO). The X-ray crystal structure of a single Lar_0958 repeat, determined at 1.5 Å resolution, revealed a divergent immunoglobulin (Ig)-like ß-sandwich fold, sharing structural homology with the Ig-like inter-repeat domain of internalins of the food borne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes. These findings provide unique structural insights into cell-surface protein repeats involved in adhesion of Gram-positive bacteria to the intestine.

Genome sequence of the vertebrate gut symbiont Lactobacillus reuteri ATCC 53608.

Lactobacillus reuteri, inhabiting the gastrointestinal tracts of a range of vertebrates, is a true symbiont with effects established as beneficial to the host. Here we describe the draft genome of L. reuteri ATCC 53608, isolated from a pig. The genome sequence provides important insights into the evolutionary changes underlying host specialization.

Strain-specific diversity of mucus-binding proteins in the adhesion and aggregation properties of Lactobacillus reuteri.

Mucus-binding proteins (MUBs) have been revealed as one of the effector molecules involved in mechanisms of the adherence of lactobacilli to the host; mub, or mub-like, genes are found in all of the six genomes of Lactobacillus reuteri that are available. We recently reported the crystal structure of a Mub repeat from L. reuteri ATCC 53608 (also designated strain 1063), revealing an unexpected recognition of immunoglobulins. In the current study, we explored the diversity of the ATCC 53608 mub gene, and MUB expression levels in a large collection of L. reuteri strains isolated from a range of vertebrate hosts. This analysis revealed that the MUB was only detectable on the cell surface of two highly related isolates when using antibodies that were raised against the protein. There was considerable variation in quantitative mucus adhesion in vitro among L. reuteri strains, and mucus binding showed excellent correlation with the presence of cell-surface ATCC 53608 MUB. ATCC 53608 MUB presence was further highly associated with the autoaggregation of L. reuteri strains in washed cell suspensions, suggesting a novel role of this surface protein in cell aggregation. We also characterized MUB expression in representative L. reuteri strains. This analysis revealed that one derivative of strain 1063 was a spontaneous mutant that expressed a C-terminally truncated version of MUB. This frameshift mutation was caused by the insertion of a duplicated 13 nt sequence at position 4867 nt in the mub gene, producing a truncated MUB also lacking the C-terminal LPxTG region, and thus unable to anchor to the cell wall. This mutant, designated 1063N (mub-4867(i)), displayed low mucus-binding and aggregation capacities, further providing evidence for the contribution of cell-wall-anchored MUB to such phenotypes. In conclusion, this study provided novel information on the functional attributes of MUB in L. reuteri, and further demonstrated that MUB and MUB-like proteins, although present in many L. reuteri isolates, show a high genetic heterogeneity among strains.

Mucin-lectin interactions assessed by flow cytometry.

The O-glycosylated domains of mucins and mucin-type glycoproteins contain 50-80% of carbohydrate and possess expanded conformations. Herein, we describe a flow cytometry (FCM) method for determining the carbohydrate-binding specificities of lectins to mucin. Biotinylated mucin was immobilized on streptavidin-coated beads, and the binding specificities of the major mucin sugar chains, as determined by GC-MS and MALDI-ToF, were monitored using fluorescein-labeled lectins. The specificities of lectins toward specific biotinylated glycans were determined as controls. The advantage of flexibility, multiparametric data acquisition, speed, sensitivity, and high-throughput capability makes flow cytometry a valuable tool to study diverse interactions between glycans and proteins.