Antigenic variation in Treponema pallidum: TprK sequence diversity accumulates in response to immune pressure during experimental syphilis. 2010

Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98104, USA.

Pathogens that cause chronic infections often employ antigenic variation to evade the immune response and persist in the host. In Treponema pallidum (T. pallidum), the causative agent of syphilis, the TprK Ag undergoes variation of seven V regions (V1-V7) by nonreciprocal recombination of silent donor cassettes with the tprK expression site. These V regions are the targets of the host humoral immune response during experimental infection. The present study addresses the causal role of the acquired immune response in the selection of TprK variants in two ways: 1) by investigating TprK variants arising in immunocompetent versus immunosuppressed hosts; and 2) by investigating the effect of prior specific immunization on selection of TprK variants during infection. V region diversity, particularly in V6, accumulates more rapidly in immunocompetent rabbits than in pharmacologically immunosuppressed rabbits (treated with weekly injections of methylprednisolone acetate). In a complementary experiment, rabbits preimmunized with V6 region synthetic peptides had more rapid accumulation of V6 variant treponemes than control rabbits. These studies demonstrate that the host immune response selects against specific TprK epitopes expressed on T. pallidum, resulting in immune selection of new TprK variants during infection, confirming a role for antigenic variation in syphilis.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008969 Molecular Sequence Data Descriptions of specific amino acid, carbohydrate, or nucleotide sequences which have appeared in the published literature and/or are deposited in and maintained by databanks such as GENBANK, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), National Biomedical Research Foundation (NBRF), or other sequence repositories. Sequence Data, Molecular,Molecular Sequencing Data,Data, Molecular Sequence,Data, Molecular Sequencing,Sequencing Data, Molecular
D011817 Rabbits A burrowing plant-eating mammal with hind limbs that are longer than its fore limbs. It belongs to the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, and in contrast to hares, possesses 22 instead of 24 pairs of chromosomes. Belgian Hare,New Zealand Rabbit,New Zealand Rabbits,New Zealand White Rabbit,Rabbit,Rabbit, Domestic,Chinchilla Rabbits,NZW Rabbits,New Zealand White Rabbits,Oryctolagus cuniculus,Chinchilla Rabbit,Domestic Rabbit,Domestic Rabbits,Hare, Belgian,NZW Rabbit,Rabbit, Chinchilla,Rabbit, NZW,Rabbit, New Zealand,Rabbits, Chinchilla,Rabbits, Domestic,Rabbits, NZW,Rabbits, New Zealand,Zealand Rabbit, New,Zealand Rabbits, New,cuniculus, Oryctolagus
D011995 Recombination, Genetic Production of new arrangements of DNA by various mechanisms such as assortment and segregation, CROSSING OVER; GENE CONVERSION; GENETIC TRANSFORMATION; GENETIC CONJUGATION; GENETIC TRANSDUCTION; or mixed infection of viruses. Genetic Recombination,Recombination,Genetic Recombinations,Recombinations,Recombinations, Genetic
D004195 Disease Models, Animal Naturally-occurring or experimentally-induced animal diseases with pathological processes analogous to human diseases. Animal Disease Model,Animal Disease Models,Disease Model, Animal
D000595 Amino Acid Sequence The order of amino acids as they occur in a polypeptide chain. This is referred to as the primary structure of proteins. It is of fundamental importance in determining PROTEIN CONFORMATION. Protein Structure, Primary,Amino Acid Sequences,Sequence, Amino Acid,Sequences, Amino Acid,Primary Protein Structure,Primary Protein Structures,Protein Structures, Primary,Structure, Primary Protein,Structures, Primary Protein
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D000907 Antibodies, Bacterial Immunoglobulins produced in a response to BACTERIAL ANTIGENS. Bacterial Antibodies
D000940 Antigenic Variation Change in the surface ANTIGEN of a microorganism. There are two different types. One is a phenomenon, especially associated with INFLUENZA VIRUSES, where they undergo spontaneous variation both as slow antigenic drift and sudden emergence of new strains (antigenic shift). The second type is when certain PARASITES, especially trypanosomes, PLASMODIUM, and BORRELIA, survive the immune response of the host by changing the surface coat (antigen switching). (From Herbert et al., The Dictionary of Immunology, 4th ed) Antigen Switching,Antigenic Diversity,Variation, Antigenic,Antigen Variation,Antigenic Switching,Antigenic Variability,Switching, Antigenic,Diversity, Antigenic,Switching, Antigen,Variability, Antigenic,Variation, Antigen
D000942 Antigens, Bacterial Substances elaborated by bacteria that have antigenic activity. Bacterial Antigen,Bacterial Antigens,Antigen, Bacterial
D001426 Bacterial Proteins Proteins found in any species of bacterium. Bacterial Gene Products,Bacterial Gene Proteins,Gene Products, Bacterial,Bacterial Gene Product,Bacterial Gene Protein,Bacterial Protein,Gene Product, Bacterial,Gene Protein, Bacterial,Gene Proteins, Bacterial,Protein, Bacterial,Proteins, Bacterial

Related Publications

Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
March 2006, Infection and immunity,
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
November 2003, Journal of bacteriology,
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
October 1983, Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950),
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
October 2020, mBio,
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
July 2019, PLoS neglected tropical diseases,
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
September 1982, Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950),
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
April 1991, FEMS microbiology immunology,
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
December 2014, Infection and immunity,
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
September 1963, The British journal of venereal diseases,
Lorenzo Giacani, and Barbara J Molini, and Eric Y Kim, and B Charmie Godornes, and B Troy Leader, and Lauren C Tantalo, and Arturo Centurion-Lara, and Sheila A Lukehart
September 1999, Infection and immunity,
Copied contents to your clipboard!