A natural human monoclonal antibody targeting Staphylococcus Protein A protects against Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia.

Staphylococcus aureus can cause devastating and life-threatening infections. With the increase in multidrug resistant strains, novel therapies are needed. Limited success with active and passive immunization strategies have been attributed to S. aureus immune evasion. Here, we report on a monoclonal antibody, 514G3, that circumvents a key S. aureus evasion mechanism by targeting the cell wall moiety Protein A (SpA). SpA tightly binds most subclasses of immunoglobulins via their Fc region, neutralizing effector function. The organism can thus shield itself with a protective coat of serum antibodies and render humoral immunity ineffective. The present antibody reactivity was derived from an individual with natural anti-SpA antibody titers. The monoclonal antibody is of an IgG3 subclass, which differs critically from other immunoglobulin subclasses since its Fc is not bound by SpA. Moreover, it targets a unique epitope on SpA that allows it to bind in the presence of serum antibodies. Consequently, the antibody opsonizes S. aureus and maintains effector function to enable natural immune mediated clearance. The data presented here provide evidence that 514G3 antibody is able to successfully rescue mice from S. aureus mediated bacteremia.

Murine lipid phosphate phosphohydrolase-3 acts as a cell-associated integrin ligand.

Lipid phosphate phosphohydrolase-3 (LPP3) is a cell surface protein that exhibits ectoenzyme activity. Previously, we identified human LPP3 in a functional assay of angiogenesis and showed that the Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) motif in the proposed second extracellular domain interacts with a subset of integrins to mediate cell-cell adhesion. In contrast to the RGD domain of human LPP3, murine Lpp3 contains a variant sequence, Arg-Gly-Glu (RGE). Whether the RGE motif of murine Lpp3 mediates cell-cell interaction has not been studied. In this report, we test the hypothesis that the cell adhesion function of the LPP3 protein is conserved across mouse and human. A glutathione S-transferase (GST) fusion protein of the proposed second extracellular loop of the murine Lpp3 sequence (GST-mLpp3-RGE) promoted attachment of cells in a long-term cell adhesion assay. GST-mLpp3-RGE interacted with alpha(5)beta(1) and alpha(v)beta(3) integrins in a solid-phase ELISA, while a mutant control, GST-hLPP3-RAD, did not. Long-term adhesion of endothelial cells to GST-mLpp3-RGE induced phosphorylation of FAK, SHC, and CAS, whereas adhesion to GST-hLPP3-RAD failed to do so. Upon long-term adhesion both the GST-hLPP3-RGD and GST-mLpp3-RGE substrates bound to the alpha(5)beta(1) integrin of FRT-alpha(5)(+) cells, an interaction that was inhibited by an anti-alpha(5) integrin antibody. In addition, a cell aggregation assay showed that the intact mLpp3-RGE protein interacts with alpha(5)beta(1) and alpha(v)beta(3) integrins expressed by adjacent cells, an interaction that can be blocked by GRGDSP peptides and anti-LPP3-RGD antibodies. These data, together with the known importance of integrins in angiogenesis, provide a mechanism for the function of LPP3 in cell-cell interactions in both human and mouse.

A hyaluronan binding link protein gene family whose members are physically linked adjacent to chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan core protein genes: the missing links.

We describe a vertebrate hyaluronan and proteoglycan binding link protein gene family (HAPLN), consisting of four members including cartilage link protein. The encoded proteins share 45-52% overall amino acid identity. In contrast to the average sequence identity between family members, the sequence conservation between vertebrate species was very high. Human and mouse link proteins share 81-96% amino acid sequence identity. Two of the four link protein genes (HAPLN2 and HAPLN4) were restricted in expression to the brain/central nervous system, while one of the four genes (HAPLN3) was widely expressed. Genomic structures revealed that all four HAPLN genes were similar in exon-intron organization and were also similar in genomic organization to the 5' exons for the CSPG core protein genes. Strikingly, all four HAPLN genes were located immediately adjacent to the four CSPG core protein genes creating four pairs of CSPG-HAPLN genes within the mammalian genome. Furthermore, the two brain-specific HAPLN genes (HAPLN2 and HAPLN4) were physically linked to the brain-specific CSPG genes encoding brevican and neurocan, respectively. The tight physical association of the HAPLN and CSPG genes supports a hypothesis that the first HAPLN gene arose as a partial gene duplication event from an ancestral CSPG gene. There is some degree of coordinated expression of each gene pair. Collectively, the four HAPLN genes are expressed by most tissue types, reflecting the fundamental importance of the hyaluronan-dependent extracellular matrix to tissue architecture and function in vertebrate species. Comparison of the genomic structures for the HAPLN, CSPG genes and other members of the link module superfamily provide strong support for a common evolutionary origin from an ancestral gene containing one link module encoding exon.

Investigation of hyaluronan function in the mouse through targeted mutagenesis.

It has become increasingly apparent that the high molecular mass glycosaminoglycan, hyaluronan (HA), is required for many morphogenetic processes during vertebrate development. This renewed understanding of the various developmental roles for HA, has come about largely through the advent of gene targeting approaches in the mouse. To date, mutations have been engineered in the enzymes responsible for biosynthesis and degradation and for those proteins that bind to HA within the extracellular matrix and at the cell surface. Collectively, the phenotypes resulting from these mutations demonstrate that HA is critical for normal mammalian embryogenesis and for various processes in postnatal and adult life (Table 1). In this article we will review our progress in understanding the biological functions for HA through targeted mutagenesis of the HA synthase 2 (Has2) and 3 (Has3) genes. Data that has been obtained from a conventional targeted disruption of the Has2 gene, is presented in an accompanying review by Camenisch and McDonald. More specifically, in this review we will provide an overview of the conditional gene targeting strategy being used to create tissue-specific deficiencies in Has2 function, along with our progress in understanding the role for Has3-dependent HA biosynthesis.