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Eriksson L, Johannesen TB, Stenmark B, Jacobsson S, Säll O, Hedberg ST, Fredlund H, Stegger M, Mölling P. Genetic variants linked to the phenotypic outcome of invasive disease and carriage of Neisseria meningitidis. Microb Genom 2023; 9:001124. [PMID: 37874326 PMCID: PMC10634450 DOI: 10.1099/mgen.0.001124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Neisseria meningitidis can be a human commensal in the upper respiratory tract but is also capable of causing invasive diseases such as meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia. No specific genetic markers have been detected to distinguish carriage from disease isolates. The aim here was to find genetic traits that could be linked to phenotypic outcomes associated with carriage versus invasive N. meningitidis disease through a bacterial genome-wide association study (GWAS). In this study, invasive N. meningitidis isolates collected in Sweden (n=103) and carriage isolates collected at Örebro University, Sweden (n=213) 2018-2019 were analysed. The GWAS analysis, treeWAS, was applied to single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), genes and k-mers. One gene and one non-synonymous SNP were associated with invasive disease and seven genes and one non-synonymous SNP were associated with carriage isolates. The gene associated with invasive disease encodes a phage transposase (NEIS1048), and the associated invasive SNP glmU S373C encodes the enzyme N-acetylglucosamine 1-phosphate (GlcNAC 1-P) uridyltransferase. Of the genes associated with carriage isolates, a gene variant of porB encoding PorB class 3, the genes pilE/pilS and tspB have known functions. The SNP associated with carriage was fkbp D33N, encoding a FK506-binding protein (FKBP). K-mers from PilS, tbpB and tspB were found to be associated with carriage, while k-mers from mtrD and tbpA were associated with invasiveness. In the genes fkbp, glmU, PilC and pilE, k-mers were found that were associated with both carriage and invasive isolates, indicating that specific variations within these genes could play a role in invasiveness. The data presented here highlight genetic traits that are significantly associated with invasive or carriage N. meningitidis across the species population. These traits could prove essential to our understanding of the pathogenicity of N. meningitidis and could help to identify future vaccine targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorraine Eriksson
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
| | - Thor Bech Johannesen
- Department of Bacteria, Parasites and Fungi, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Bianca Stenmark
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
| | - Susanne Jacobsson
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
| | - Olof Säll
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
| | - Sara Thulin Hedberg
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
| | - Hans Fredlund
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
| | - Marc Stegger
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
- Department of Bacteria, Parasites and Fungi, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Paula Mölling
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
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Jolley KA, Bray JE, Maiden MCJ. Open-access bacterial population genomics: BIGSdb software, the PubMLST.org website and their applications. Wellcome Open Res 2018; 3:124. [PMID: 30345391 PMCID: PMC6192448 DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.14826.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1477] [Impact Index Per Article: 246.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The
PubMLST.org website hosts a collection of open-access, curated databases that integrate population sequence data with provenance and phenotype information for over 100 different microbial species and genera. Although the PubMLST website was conceived as part of the development of the first multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) scheme in 1998 the software it uses, the Bacterial Isolate Genome Sequence database (BIGSdb, published in 2010), enables PubMLST to include all levels of sequence data, from single gene sequences up to and including complete, finished genomes. Here we describe developments in the BIGSdb software made from publication to June 2018 and show how the platform realises microbial population genomics for a wide range of applications. The system is based on the gene-by-gene analysis of microbial genomes, with each deposited sequence annotated and curated to identify the genes present and systematically catalogue their variation. Originally intended as a means of characterising isolates with typing schemes, the synthesis of sequences and records of genetic variation with provenance and phenotype data permits highly scalable (whole genome sequence data for tens of thousands of isolates) means of addressing a wide range of functional questions, including: the prediction of antimicrobial resistance; likely cross-reactivity with vaccine antigens; and the functional activities of different variants that lead to key phenotypes. There are no limitations to the number of sequences, genetic loci, allelic variants or schemes (combinations of loci) that can be included, enabling each database to represent an expanding catalogue of the genetic variation of the population in question. In addition to providing web-accessible analyses and links to third-party analysis and visualisation tools, the BIGSdb software includes a RESTful application programming interface (API) that enables access to all the underlying data for third-party applications and data analysis pipelines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keith A Jolley
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK
| | - James E Bray
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK
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The Role of Meningococcal Porin B in Protein-Protein Interactions with Host Cells. FOLIA VETERINARIA 2018. [DOI: 10.2478/fv-2018-0008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Neisseria meningitidis is a Gram-negative diplococcus responsible for bacterial meningitis and fatal sepsis. Ligand-receptor interactions are one of the main steps in the development of neuroinvasion. Porin B (PorB), neisserial outer membrane protein (ligand), binds to host receptors and triggers many cell signalling cascades allowing the meningococcus to damage the host cells or induce immune cells responses via the TLR2-dependent mechanisms. In this paper, we present a brief review of the structure and function of PorB.
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Matthias KA, Strader MB, Nawar HF, Gao YS, Lee J, Patel DS, Im W, Bash MC. Heterogeneity in non-epitope loop sequence and outer membrane protein complexes alters antibody binding to the major porin protein PorB in serogroup B Neisseria meningitidis. Mol Microbiol 2017; 105:934-953. [PMID: 28708335 DOI: 10.1111/mmi.13747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/13/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
PorB is a well-characterized outer membrane protein that is common among Neisseria species and is required for survival. A vaccine candidate, PorB induces antibody responses that are directed against six variable surface-exposed loops that differ in sequence depending on serotype. Although Neisseria meningitidis is naturally competent and porB genetic mosaicism provides evidence for strong positive selection, the sequences of PorB serotypes commonly associated with invasive disease are often conserved, calling into question the interaction of specific PorB loop sequences in immune engagement. In this report, we provide evidence that antibody binding to a PorB epitope can be altered by sequence mutations in non-epitope loops. Through the construction of hybrid PorB types and PorB molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate that loops both adjacent and non-adjacent to the epitope loop can enhance or diminish antibody binding, a phenotype that correlates with serum bactericidal activity. We further examine the interaction of PorB with outer membrane-associated proteins, including PorA and RmpM. Deletion of these proteins alters the composition of PorB-containing native complexes and reduces antibody binding and serum killing relative to the parental strain, suggesting that both intramolecular and intermolecular PorB interactions contribute to host adaptive immune evasion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn A Matthias
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Michael Brad Strader
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Hesham F Nawar
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Yamei S Gao
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Joonseong Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, PA, USA
| | - Dhilon S Patel
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, PA, USA
| | - Wonpil Im
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, PA, USA
| | - Margaret C Bash
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA
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Toussi DN, Wetzler LM, Liu X, Massari P. Neisseriae internalization by epithelial cells is enhanced by TLR2 stimulation. Microbes Infect 2016; 18:627-638. [PMID: 27373686 DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2016.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2016] [Revised: 05/31/2016] [Accepted: 06/01/2016] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Neisseria meningitidis (NM) is an opportunistic gram-negative human pathogen that colonizes the human nasopharyngeal epithelium. Asymptomatic carriage is common, but some meningococcal strains can invade nasopharyngeal epithelial cells and proceed to cause severe and often fatal infections. Invasion is predominantly driven by expression of bacterial virulence factors and host cell cognate receptors for bacterial recognition. Porins are among the Neisserial components involved in host cell activation and bacterial internalization processes. Similar to other virulence factors, porins present antigenic and structure variability among strains. Such sequence variability in the surface-exposed loop regions has been correlated to bacterial invasiveness and to variability in host cell responses via Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2). Here, we examined whether TLR2 signaling by porins influences recovery of intracellular Neisseriae from epithelial cells in vitro. Our results show that TLR2 stimulation, either by the organism or exogenously, generally enhances Neisseriae internalization by epithelial cells. TLR2-driven intracellular signaling via ERK1/2, JNK and particularly NF-κB plays a role in this process. Based on these results, it is possible that expression of porin sequence variants that strongly induce TLR2 activation may be a mechanism to enhance the invasive features of pathogenic Neisseriae strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deana N Toussi
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, EBRC, 650 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA; Novartis Companion Diagnostics, 45 Sidney Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Lee M Wetzler
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, EBRC, 650 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Xiuping Liu
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, EBRC, 650 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Paola Massari
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, EBRC, 650 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA; Department of Integrative Physiology and Pathobiology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Jaharis 501b, 150 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA 02111, USA.
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