ABSTRACT
A marine Bacillus cereus (VCRC B540) with mosquitocidal effect was recently reported from red snapper fish (Lutjanus sanguineous) gut and surface layer protein (S-layer protein, SLP) was reported to be mosquito larvicidal factor. In this present study, the gene encoding the surface layer protein was amplified from the genomic DNA and functionally characterized. Amplification of SLP-encoding gene revealed 1,518 bp PCR product, and analysis of the sequence revealed the presence of 1482 bp open reading frame with coding capacity for a polypeptide of 493 amino acids. Phylogenetic analysis revealed with homology among closely related Bacillus cereus groups of organisms as well as Bacillus strains. Removal of nucleotides encoding signaling peptide revealed the functional cloning fragment of length 1398 bp. Theoretical molecular weight (51.7 kDa) and isoelectric point (5.99) of the deduced functional SLP protein were predicted using ProtParam. The amplified PCR product was cloned into a plasmid vector (pGEM-T), and the open reading frame free off signaling peptide was subsequently cloned inpET-28a(+) and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3). The isopropyl-ß-D-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG)-induced recombinant SLP was confirmed using western blotting, and functional SLP revealed mosquito larvicidal property. Therefore, the major findings revealed that SLP is a factor responsible for mosquitocidal activity, and the molecular characterization of this toxin was extensively studied.
Subject(s)
Bacillus cereus , Insecticides/chemistry , Membrane Glycoproteins , Bacillus cereus/chemistry , Bacillus cereus/genetics , Membrane Glycoproteins/chemistry , Membrane Glycoproteins/genetics , Membrane Glycoproteins/isolation & purification , Recombinant Proteins/chemistry , Recombinant Proteins/genetics , Recombinant Proteins/isolation & purificationABSTRACT
Plant genetic engineering, which has led to the production of plant-derived monoclonal antibodies (mAb(P)s), provides a safe and economically effective alternative to conventional antibody expression methods. In this study, the expression levels and biological properties of the anti-rabies virus mAb(P) SO57 with or without an endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-retention peptide signal (Lys-Asp-Glu-Leu; KDEL) in transgenic tobacco plants (Nicotiana tabacum) were analyzed. The expression levels of mAb(P) SO57 with KDEL (mAb(P)K) were significantly higher than those of mAb(P) SO57 without KDEL (mAb(P)) regardless of the transcription level. The Fc domains of both purified mAb(P) and mAb(P)K and hybridoma-derived mAb (mAb(H)) had similar levels of binding activity to the FcγRI receptor (CD64). The mAb(P)K had glycan profiles of both oligomannose (OM) type (91.7%) and Golgi type (8.3%), whereas the mAb(P) had mainly Golgi type glycans (96.8%) similar to those seen with mAb(H). Confocal analysis showed that the mAb(P)K was co-localized to ER-tracker signal and cellular areas surrounding the nucleus indicating accumulation of the mAb(P) with KDEL in the ER. Both mAb(P) and mAb(P)K disappeared with similar trends to mAb(H) in BALB/c mice. In addition, mAb(P)K was as effective as mAb(H) at neutralizing the activity of the rabies virus CVS-11. These results suggest that the ER localization of the recombinant mAb(P) by KDEL reprograms OM glycosylation and enhances the production of the functional antivirus therapeutic antibody in the plant.
Subject(s)
Antibodies, Monoclonal , Antibodies, Viral , Gene Expression , Plantibodies/genetics , Plantibodies/metabolism , Animals , Glycosylation , Intracellular Space , Mice , Plant Cells/metabolism , Plantibodies/chemistry , Plantibodies/immunology , Plantibodies/isolation & purification , Plants, Genetically Modified/genetics , Plants, Genetically Modified/metabolism , Protein Transport , Nicotiana/genetics , Nicotiana/metabolismABSTRACT
In this study, the 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid (3,4-DHBA) from Terminalia nigrovenulosa bark (TNB) was purified and its in vitro nematicidal activity was investigated against Meloidogyne incognita. The purification of 3,4-DHBA used a silica gel column and Sephadex LH-20 chromatography combined with thin-layer chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography. Structural identification of the 3,4-DHBA was conducted using (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), (13)C NMR, and liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Nematicidal activity bioassays revealed that 3,4-DHBA treatment resulted in 33.3, 47.5, 72.5 and 94.2% J2 mortality at 0.125, 0.25, 0.5 and 1.0 mg/ml, respectively after 12 h incubation. J2 mortality was increased significantly (P < 0.0001) with increasing incubation time in the range of 54.2-94.2% from 3 to 9 h after incubation with 3,4-DHBA (1.0 mg/ml), but with no significant difference observed where the incubation time was increased from 9 to 12 h. The 3,4-DHBA treatment resulted in 33.3, 65.0, 76.7 and 85.0% hatch inhibition at 0.125, 0.25, 0.5 and 1.0 mg/ml, respectively, 3 days after incubation. Changes in the shape of the eggs were determined after incubation for 1 day with a 3,4-DHBA concentration of 1.0 mg/ml.
Subject(s)
Anthelmintics/pharmacology , Hydroxybenzoates/pharmacology , Terminalia/chemistry , Tylenchoidea/drug effects , Animals , Anthelmintics/isolation & purification , Biological Assay , Chromatography, Gel , Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid , Chromatography, Thin Layer , Hydroxybenzoates/isolation & purification , Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy , Plant Bark/chemistry , Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization , Survival Analysis , Tylenchoidea/physiology , Zygote/drug effectsABSTRACT
In this study, a bacterium Serratia marcescens PRC-5 that displayed strong chitinolytic activity on 0.5% colloidal chitin-containing agar medium was isolated from soil. The chitinase activity increased rapidly with a maximum level (6.14 U/mL) on 4 days of incubation with swollen chitin (pH 5.0). Three active bands of chitinase isozymes were observed (53, 44, and 34 kDa) on SDS-PAGE gel and there pI values ranged from pI 5.4 to 5.8 on 2D gels. The chitinase from the PRC-5 strain was also able to produce GlcNAc monomers on TLC plates. The chitinase of PRC-5 inhibited the mycelial growth of Rhizoctonia solani KACC40111, which indicates that it could be used as a biocontrol agent for phytophathogens. The chitinase isozyme N1, which had a molecular weight of 62 kDa, was transferred from a native and SDS-PAGE gel onto an immunoblot and was probed using an anti-PrGV-chitinase.
Subject(s)
Chitinases/analysis , Chitinases/biosynthesis , Immunoblotting/methods , Immunoglobulin G/immunology , Serratia marcescens/metabolism , Amino Acid Sequence , Animals , Chitinases/chemistry , Chitinases/immunology , Molecular Sequence Data , Rats , Rhizoctonia/growth & development , Serratia marcescens/physiology , Soil MicrobiologyABSTRACT
Duffy binding protein (DBP) plays a critical role in Plasmodium vivax invasion of human red blood cells. We previously reported a single-chain antibody fragment (scFv) that was specific to P. vivax DBP (PvDBP). However, the stabilization and the half-life of scFvs have not been studied. Here, we investigated the effect of PEGylated scFvs on their biological activity and stability in vitro. SDS-PAGE analysis showed that three clones (SFDBII-12, -58, and -92) were formed as dimers (about 70 kDa) with PEGylation. Clone SFDBII-58 gave the highest yield of PEGylated scFv. Binding analysis using BIAcore between DBP and scFv showed that both SFDBII-12 and -58 were decreased approximately by two folds at the level of binding affinity to DBP after PEGylation. However, the SFDBII-92 clone still showed a relatively high level of binding affinity (KD=1.02 x 10(-7) M). Binding inhibition assay showed that PEGylated scFv was still able to competitively bind the PvDBP and play a critical role in inhibiting the interactions between PvDBP protein expressed on the surface of Cos-7 cells and Duffy receptor on the surface of erythrocytes. When both scFvs and their PEGylated counterparts were exposed to trypsin, scFv was completely degraded only after 24 h, whereas 35% of PEGylated scFvs remained intact, maintaining their stability against the proteolytic attack of trypsin until 72 h. Taken together, these results suggest that the PEGylated scFvs retain their stability against proteolytic enzymes in vivo, with no significant loss in their binding affinity to target antigen, DBP.
Subject(s)
Antibodies, Protozoan/metabolism , Antigens, Protozoan/immunology , Immunoglobulin Fragments/metabolism , Plasmodium vivax/immunology , Polyethylene Glycols/metabolism , Protozoan Proteins/immunology , Receptors, Cell Surface/immunology , Animals , Antibodies, Protozoan/chemistry , Antibody Affinity , Antigens, Protozoan/genetics , COS Cells , Cell Line , Chlorocebus aethiops , Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel , Erythrocytes/immunology , Humans , Immunoglobulin Fragments/chemistry , Kinetics , Protozoan Proteins/genetics , Receptors, Cell Surface/genetics , Recombinant Proteins/genetics , Recombinant Proteins/immunology , Recombinant Proteins/metabolism , Surface Plasmon Resonance , Trypsin/metabolismABSTRACT
The importance of the WMN(D/E)PN motif, which is well conserved among beta-fructofuranosidases grouped in the glycosylhydrolase family 32, in Aspergillus ficuum endoinulinase was accessed. Each mutant enzyme generated by site-directed mutagenesis of Trp17 in the conserved motif to Gln, Leu, Ser, Pro, Thr, or Met had an activity of less than 1% of the wild type. Another mutant enzyme obtained by mutation of Glu20 in the motif to Ser, Leu, Thr, Gln, Ala, or Val had an enzyme activity of less than 1% of the wild type. Furthermore, the E20D mutant enzyme, in which Glu20 in the conserved motif was replaced with Asp, had 1.1% of the wild type activity. These results clearly indicated that Trp17 and Glu20 are essential for the enzyme activity.