Peptides derived from the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Rv1490 surface protein implicated in inhibition of epithelial cell entry: potential vaccine candidates?

This study reports the Rv1490 gene presence and transcription in members of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, and characterises the encoded Rv1490 putative membrane protein in M. tuberculosis H37Rv. Rv1490 derived peptides were synthesised and their A549 and U937 cell binding ability was tested, finding five high activity binding peptides (HABPs) for A549 and five for U937. Only two HABPs (11060 and 11073) were shared by both cell lines, both of which affected M. tuberculosis' invading ability to target cells, thus indicating an important role for these sequences in M. tuberculosis entry to A549 alveolar epithelial cells and supporting their inclusion in further studies on the development of a subunit-based multi-epitopic, chemically synthesised anti-tuberculosis vaccine.