Expression of the Clostridium botulinum A2 neurotoxin gene cluster proteins and characterization of the A2 complex

Appl Environ Microbiol. 2010 Jan;76(1):40-7. doi: 10.1128/AEM.01882-09. Epub 2009 Nov 13.

Abstract

Clostridium botulinum subtype A2 possesses a botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNT/A) gene cluster consisting of an orfX cluster containing open reading frames (ORFs) of unknown functions. To better understand the association between the BoNT/A2 complex proteins, first, the orfX cluster proteins (ORFX1, ORFX3, P47, and the middle part of NTNH) from C. botulinum A2 strain Kyoto F and NTNH of A1 strain ATCC 3502 were expressed by using either an Escherichia coli or a C. botulinum expression system. Polyclonal antibodies against individual orfX cluster proteins were prepared by immunizing a rabbit and mice against the expressed proteins. Antibodies were then utilized as probes to determine which of the A2 orfX cluster genes were expressed in the native A2 culture. N-terminal protein sequencing was also employed to specifically detect ORFX2. Results showed that all of the neurotoxin cluster proteins, except ORFX1, were expressed in the A2 culture. A BoNT/A2 toxin complex (TC) was purified which showed that C. botulinum A2 formed a medium-size (300-kDa) TC composed of BoNT/A2 and NTNH without any of the other OrfX cluster proteins. NTNH subtype-specific immunoreactivity was also discovered, allowing for the differentiation of subtypes based on cluster proteins associated with BoNT.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antibodies, Bacterial / immunology
  • Bacterial Proteins / biosynthesis*
  • Bacterial Proteins / immunology
  • Bacterial Proteins / isolation & purification
  • Blotting, Western
  • Botulinum Toxins, Type A / biosynthesis*
  • Botulinum Toxins, Type A / immunology
  • Botulinum Toxins, Type A / isolation & purification
  • Cloning, Molecular
  • Clostridium botulinum / genetics*
  • Escherichia coli / genetics
  • Gene Expression
  • Mice
  • Multigene Family*
  • Rabbits
  • Staining and Labeling / methods

Substances

  • Antibodies, Bacterial
  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Botulinum Toxins, Type A