Shigella sonnei phase I and phase II: susceptibility to direct serum lysis and opsonic requirements necessary for stimulation of leukocyte redox metabolism and killing (original) (raw)

An O Antigen Capsule Modulates Bacterial Pathogenesis in Shigella sonnei

PLOS Pathogens, 2015

Shigella is the leading cause for dysentery worldwide. Together with several virulence factors employed for invasion, the presence and length of the O antigen (OAg) of the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) plays a key role in pathogenesis. S. flexneri 2a has a bimodal OAg chain length distribution regulated in a growth-dependent manner, whereas S. sonnei LPS comprises a monomodal OAg. Here we reveal that S. sonnei, but not S. flexneri 2a, possesses a high molecular weight, immunogenic group 4 capsule, characterized by structural similarity to LPS OAg. We found that a galU mutant of S. sonnei, that is unable to produce a complete LPS with OAg attached, can still assemble OAg material on the cell surface, but a galU mutant of S. flexneri 2a cannot. High molecular weight material not linked to the LPS was purified from S. sonnei and confirmed by NMR to contain the specific sugars of the S. sonnei OAg. Deletion of genes homologous to the group 4 capsule synthesis cluster, previously described in Escherichia coli, abolished the generation of the high molecular weight OAg material. This OAg capsule strongly affects the virulence of S. sonnei. Uncapsulated knockout bacteria were highly invasive in vitro and strongly inflammatory in the rabbit intestine. But, the lack of capsule reduced the ability of S. sonnei to resist complement-mediated killing and to spread from the gut to peripheral organs. In contrast, overexpression of the capsule decreased invasiveness in vitro and inflammation in vivo compared to the wild type. In conclusion, the data indicate that in S. sonnei expression of the capsule modulates bacterial pathogenesis resulting in balanced capabilities to invade and persist in the host environment.

Immunochemical studies on Shigella boydii lipopolysaccharides

European journal of biochemistry / FEBS, 1973

An investigation of the sugar composition of lipopolysaccharides derived from fifteen welldefined Shigella boydii serotypes was carried out. All Sh. boydii lipopolysaccharides contained glucosarnine, glucose, galactose, heptose and 3-deoxyoctulosonic acid. These sugars were considered to represent the core polysaccharides and those except heptose and 3-deoxyoctulosonic acid could represent the constituents of the 0-specific polysaccharide chains. In addition to the basal sugars, the following monosaccharides were detected as constituents of the various Sh. boydii lipopolysaccharides : mannose, rhamnose, L-quinovosamine, galactosamine and 3,6-dideoxyhexose. As a result, a chemical classification of Sh. boydii lipopolysaccharides into eight chemotypes was achieved and this differs from the accepted Sh. boydii classification.

Shigella flexneri is trapped in polymorphonuclear leukocyte vacuoles and efficiently killed

Infection and Immunity, 1997

We examined the bactericidal activity of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) against an invasive wild-type strain of Shigella flexneri (M90T) and a plasmid-cured noninvasive derivative (BS176). Both Shigella strains, as well as a rough strain of Escherichia coli, were killed with similar efficiencies by intact inflammatory PMN in room air and under N 2 (i.e., killing was O 2 independent). Bacterial killing by PMN extracts was substantially inhibited by antibodies to the bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein (BPI). Whereas wild-type Shigella escapes from the phagosome to the cytoplasm in epithelial cells and macrophages, wild-type Shigella was trapped in the phagolysosome of PMN as visualized by electron microscopy. The efficient killing of Shigella by PMN suggests that these inflammatory cells may not only contribute initially to the severe tissue damage characteristic of shigellosis but also ultimately participate in clearance and resolution of infection.

Shigella sonnei O-antigen inhibits internalisation, vacuole escape and inflammasome activation

Two Shigella species, flexneri and sonnei, cause approximately 90% of bacterial dysentery worldwide. While S. flexneri is the dominant species in low-income countries, S. sonnei causes the majority of infections in middle and high-income countries. S. flexneri is a prototypic cytosolic bacterium; once intracellular it rapidly escapes the phagocytic vacuole and causes pyroptosis of macrophages, which is important for pathogenesis and bacterial spread. By contrast little is known about the invasion, vacuole escape and induction of pyroptosis during S. sonnei infection of macrophages. We demonstrate that S. sonnei causes substantially less pyroptosis in human primary monocyte-derived macrophages and THP1 cells. This is due to reduced bacterial uptake and lower relative vacuole escape, which results in fewer cytosolic S. sonnei and hence reduced activation of caspase-1 inflammasomes. Mechanistically, the O-antigen, which in S. sonnei is contained in both the lipopolysaccharide and the c...

Immunoglobulin M, A, and G antibody response to lipopolysaccharide O antigen in symptomatic and asymptomatic Shigella infections

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 1989

The antilipopolysaccharide antibody response in sera obtained from subjects involved in 10 outbreaks of shigellosis occurring in Israeli military field units was determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and a passive hemagglutination test. Both tests were found to be sensitive and specific for the diagnosis of shigellosis. A significant antibody response was detected in 73 to 82% of the symptomatic and 48 to 60% of the asymptomatic subjects during the Shigella sonnei and Shigella flexneri outbreaks. Fifty percent of the symptomatic and none of the asymptomatic subjects showed a significant antibody response in the Shigella boydii outbreaks. An examination of the kinetics of the antibody levels over a 10-week period after the onset of disease revealed that immunoglobulin A (IgA) levels were highest 2 weeks after infection and had declined to initial levels within 2.5 months. In contrast, IgG levels at the late convalescent stage were half those measured at early convalescence, still being about twice as high as the initial titers. Although the IgM levels showed a pattern similar to that of IgA, their elevation at the early convalescent stage was less pronounced. We conclude that the detection of an increase in the level of the IgA fraction appeared to be the best indicator for recent symptomatic, as well as asymptomatic, infections due to Shigella organisms.

Loss of the virulence plasmid by Shigella sonnei promotes its interactions with CD207 and CD209 receptors

Introduction. Shigella sonnei, the cause of bacillary dysentery, belongs to Gram-negative enteropathogenic bacteria. S. sonnei contains a 210 kb virulence plasmid that encodes an O-antigen gene cluster of LPSs. However, this virulence plasmid is frequently lost during replication. It is well-documented that after losing the O-antigen and becoming rough strains, the Gramnegative bacteria may express an LPS core on its surface. Previous studies have suggested that by using the LPS core, Gram-negative bacteria can interact with several C-type lectin receptors that are expressed on antigen-presenting cells (APCs). Hypothesis/Gap Statement. S. sonnei by losing the virulence plasmid may hijack APCs via the interactions of LPS-CD209/ CD207. Aim. This study aimed to investigate if the S. sonnei rough strain, by losing the virulence plasmid, interacted with APCs that express C-type lectins of human CD207, human CD209a and mouse CD209b. Methodology. SDS-PAGE silver staining was used to examine the O-antigen expression of S. sonnei WT and its rough strain. Invasion assays and inhibition assays were used to examine the ability of S. sonnei WT and its rough strain to invade APCs and investigate whether CD209 and CD207 are receptors for phagocytosis of rough S. sonnei. Animal assays were used to observe the dissemination of S. sonnei. Results. S. sonnei did not express O-antigens after losing the virulence plasmid. The S. sonnei rough strain invades with APCs, including human dendritic cells (DCs) and mouse macrophages. CD209 and CD207 are receptors for phagocytosis of rough S. sonnei. Expression of the O-antigen reduces the ability of the S. sonnei rough strain to be disseminated to mesenteric lymph nodes and spleens. Conclusion. This work demonstrated that S. sonnei rough strains-by losing the virulence plasmid-invaded APCs through interactions with CD209 and CD207 receptors.

Prospective study of the association between serum antibodies to lipopolysaccharide O antigen and the attack rate of shigellosis

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 1991

A means for determining immune status against shigellosis would significantly improve the design and evaluation of interventional and other epidemiologic studies. Previous case-control studies have indicated the potential role of humoral antilipopolysaccharide antibodies. To test this proposition, 190 soldiers serving in a field unit were monitored prospectively for 2.5 months for shigellosis. Blood samples were taken at the beginning of the follow-up period and tested for serological evidence of prior exposure to Shigella sonnei and Shigella flexneri. The risk for acquiring S. sonnei shigellosis was 3.7 times higher for individuals lacking homologous antibodies (P less than 0.02). The risk for acquiring S. flexneri shigellosis was 2.4 times higher for individuals lacking antibodies, although a low attack rate for S. flexneri resulted in numbers too small to achieve statistical significance. While the importance of the serum antilipopolysaccharide antibodies in protection against th...

Monoclonal immunoglobulin A antibody directed against serotype-specific epitope of Shigella flexneri lipopolysaccharide protects against murine experimental shigellosis

Journal of Experimental Medicine, 1995

To determine the role of humoral mucosal immune response in protection against shigellosis, we have obtained a monoclonal dimeric immunoglobulin A (IgA) antibody specific for Shigella flexneri serotype 5a lipopolysaccharide (mIgA) and used a murine pulmonary infection model that mimics the lesions occurring in natural intestinal infection. Adult BALB/c mice challenged with 10(7) S. flexneri organisms developed a rapid inflammatory response characterized by polymorphonuclear cell infiltration around and within the bronchi and strong systemic interleukin 6 response. Implantation of hybridoma cells in the back of mice, resulting in the development of a myeloma tumor producing mIgA in the serum and subsequently secretory mIgA in local secretions, or direct intranasal administration of these antibodies, protected the animals against subsequent intranasal challenge with S. flexneri serotype 5a. Absence of histopathological lesion and significant decrease in bacterial load of the lungs and...

Dissecting in Vitro the Activation of Human Immune Response Induced by Shigella sonnei GMMA

Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, 2022

Generalized Modules for Membrane Antigens (GMMA) are outer membrane exosomes purified from Gram-negative bacteria genetically mutated to increase blebbing and reduce risk of reactogenicity. This is commonly achieved through modification of the lipid A portion of lipopolysaccharide. GMMA faithfully resemble the bacterial outer membrane surface, and therefore represent a powerful and flexible platform for vaccine development. Although GMMA-based vaccines have been demonstrated to induce a strong and functional antibody response in animals and humans maintaining an acceptable reactogenicity profile, the overall impact on immune cells and their mode of action are still poorly understood. To characterize the GMMA-induced immune response, we stimulated human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (hPBMCs) with GMMA from Shigella sonnei. We studied GMMA both with wild-type hexa-acylated lipid A and with the corresponding less reactogenic penta-acylated form. Using multicolor flow cytometry, we...