The effect of saturation with Zn2+ and other metal ions on the antibacterial activity of ovotransferrin

The Role of Ovotransferrin in Egg-White Antimicrobial Activity: A Review

Eggs are a whole food which affordably support human nutritional requirements worldwide. Eggs strongly resist bacterial infection due to an arsenal of defensive systems, many of which reside in the egg white. However, despite improved control of egg production and distribution, eggs remain a vehicle for foodborne transmission of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis, which continues to represent a major public health challenge. It is generally accepted that iron deficiency, mediated by the iron-chelating properties of the egg-white protein ovotransferrin, has a key role in inhibiting infection of eggs by Salmonella. Ovotransferrin has an additional antibacterial activity beyond iron-chelation, which appears to depend on direct interaction with the bacterial cell surface, resulting in membrane perturbation. Current understanding of the antibacterial role of ovotransferrin is limited by a failure to fully consider its activity within the natural context of the egg white, where a series relevant environmental factors (such as alkalinity, high viscosity, ionic composition, and egg white protein interactions) may exert significant influence on ovotransferrin activity. This review provides an overview of what is known and what remains to be determined regarding the antimicrobial activity of ovotransferrin in egg white, and thus enhances understanding of egg safety through improved insight of this key antimicrobial component of eggs.

Functional properties of ovotransferrin from chicken egg white and its derived peptides: a review

With emerging trends in the food and pharmaceutical industries, potential applications of egg-derived bioactive compounds were recognized. Ovotransferrin is a major egg white functional protein responsible for multiple bioactivities. The objectives of this review are to provide scientific evidence of the functional properties of chicken ovotransferrin and its derived peptides and to identify future research approaches and applications. Various easy, economical, and non-toxic methods have been reported to produce ovotransferrin with high yield and purity, and chemical and enzymatic approaches have been employed to release bioactive peptides. The native ovotransferrin is known to have antimicrobial, antioxidant, anticancer, and immunomodulatory activities. The peptides produced from ovotransferrin also are reported to have antioxidant, antimicrobial, antihypertensive, and anticancer properties. However, little or no application of these compounds in the food and pharmaceutical areas is available yet. Therefore, the practical application of OTF in nutraceutical and pharmaceutical areas are among the emerging areas of research.

Proteomic analysis of fertilized egg yolk proteins during embryonic development

Egg yolk is an important source of nutrients for embryo development. In this study, the egg yolk protein composition at 0, 10, and 18 D of incubation was analyzed by 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) combined with matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry. A significant difference in the abundance of 42 protein spots representing 12 proteins were identified (P < 0.05). The 2-DE gel image analysis exhibited that the molecular weight (MW) of 29 protein spots was lower than their theoretical value, in which 14 vitellogenin (VTG) fragments were lower than the theoretical value. There were 13 protein spots showed a higher MW including 5 ovotransferrins with MW of 87.2 kDa. The gene ontology enrichment analysis suggested that biological process of the differentially expressed proteins were mainly involved in lipid transport and lipid localization at 10 and 18 D of incubation. The molecular function of the differentially expressed proteins was involved in nutrient reservoir activity, lipid transporter activity, and antigen binding at 10 D of incubation. At 18 D of incubation, the differentially expressed proteins mainly participated in nutrient reservoir activity and substrate-specific transporter activity. The high abundance of VTGs at 10 D of incubation might participate in lipid localization and lipid transportation to facilitate the yolk nutrient transport to embryo. The low expression of ovotransferrins at 10 D of incubation indicated the chondrogenesis of embryo.

Comparative proteomic analysis of hen egg yolk plasma proteins during embryonic development

Avian egg yolk provides essential nutrients and physiological support for the developing embryo. To reveal the dynamics of yolk proteins during the entire period of incubation, we analyzed the alterations of egg yolk plasma proteins at different times during incubation (day 0, 7, 14, and 18). Day 14 (D14) of incubation was considered as the key point on the alteration of egg yolk proteins according to the SDS-PAGE analysis. The two-dimensional electrophoresis-based comparative proteomic analysis was conducted, and 26 spots representing 13 proteins were detected with significant changes in abundance. An accelerating transfer of ovalbumin from egg white into egg yolk was observed at D14 in fertilized eggs but not detected in unfertilized eggs, indicating an unrevealed absorbing pathway for the egg proteins/peptides particularly in fertilized eggs. Meanwhile, the abundance of yolk riboflavin-binding protein constantly decreased after D14, which might meet the need for essential riboflavin during embryo development. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: These findings provide fundamental insight into the effects of incubation on egg yolk plasma protein alterations during the entire embryonic development for a better understanding of plasma protein biological functions, especially in nutrient transportations and the formation of embryonic organs.

Ovotransferrin plays a major role in the strong bactericidal effect of egg white against the Bacillus cereus group

Bacillus cereus group bacteria are opportunistically pathogenic spore-forming microorganisms well known in the sector of pasteurized food products because of their involvement in spoilage events. In the sector of egg product processing, these bacteria may lead to important economic losses. It seemed then relevant to study their behavior in egg white, a widely used egg product usually recognized as developing different levels of antimicrobial activities depending on the environmental conditions. A strong bactericidal effect (decrease in the bacterial population of 6.1 ± 0.2 log CFU/ml) was observed for 68 B. cereus group isolates, independently incubated at 30°C in egg white at pH 9.3 (natural egg white pH). To determine which components could explain such a strong bactericidal effect, an experimental strategy was carried out, based on egg white fractionation by ultrafiltration and by anion-exchange liquid chromatography. The role of the protein fraction was thus demonstrated, and subsequent nano-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analyses allowed identification of ovotransferrin as a major protein involved. The strong bactericidal effect was confirmed in the presence of commercial ovotransferrin. Such a bactericidal effect (i.e., a decrease in the bacterial population through cell death) had never been described because ovotransferrin is known for its bacteriostatic effect (i.e., inhibition of growth) due to its ability to chelate iron. Surprisingly, the addition of iron did not reverse the bactericidal effect of ovotransferrin under alkaline conditions (pH 9.3), whereas it completely reversed this effect at pH 7.3. Ovotransferrin was shown to provoke a perturbation of the electrochemical potential of the cytoplasmic membrane. A membrane disturbance mechanism could, hence, be involved, leading to the lysis of B. cereus group bacteria incubated in egg white.

Comparative proteomic analysis of egg white proteins under various storage temperatures

Although the effect of storage temperature was suggested to be a more important factor than that of storage time on changes in unfertilized egg white proteins, no comprehensive analysis of the thermally induced egg white protein changes was carried out. This study presents a proteomic analysis of the changes in unfertilized egg white proteins after 15 days of storage at 4, 20, and 37 °C. Using two-dimensional electrophoresis followed by MALDI-TOF MS/MS, 32 protein spots representing 8 proteins were identified with significant differences in abundance when stored at different temperatures. An accelerated degradation of ovalbumin, possibly resulting from the reduction of antiprotease, was observed after the storage at higher temperature. In addition, an increase in the formation of ovalbumin complexes and a decrease in lipocalin family proteins were detected with increasing storage temperature, which may indicate a thermally promoted change in chicken eggs. The decrease of clusterin during the high-temperature storage was suggested to be an effective biomarker for egg quality evaluation. These findings will give insight into the effects of storage temperature on changes in unfertilized egg white proteins during storage and provide a better understanding of the thermally induced biochemical changes that may affect the egg deteriorative process.

Identification of Eggshell Membrane Proteins and Purification of Ovotransferrin and β-NAGase from Hen Egg White

Exposure of selected Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial pathogens to egg shell membranes (ESM) significantly reduced their thermal resistance and/or inactivated cells. Although the components responsible for this antibacterial activity have not been conclusively identified, several proteins associated with the ESM activity have been identified including beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase, lysozyme and ovotransferrin, with each displaying varying degrees of antibacterial activity. Numerous attempts to purify active fractions of beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase, lysozyme and ovotransferrin from the ESM proved somewhat limited; however, hen egg white (HEW) beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase was purified using a two-step chromatographic procedure, isoelectric focusing followed by cation exchange chromatography. Pure fractions of ovotransferrin were also obtained in the process. SDS-PAGE electrophoresis and Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry were then used to partially characterize the individual protein components. Purified protein fractions such as these will be required in order to fully elucidate the mechanism responsible for the antimicrobial properties associated with the ESM.

Enhancement of the activity of novobiocin against Escherichia coli by lactoferrin

The activity of novobiocin against Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and three E. coli strains that were isolated from cases of bovine mastitis was determined in timekill studies in the presence of bovine lactoferrin. Lactoferrin alone did not affect the growth of any of the strains of E. coli. A combination of 1.0 mg/ml of lactoferrin and novobiocin at 1/16x minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was bactericidal for E. coli ATCC 25922. When the concentration was increased to 3.0 mg/ml of lactoferrin, novobiocin was bactericidal at 1/64x MIC. Among the mastitis strains tested, 6789 and 6806 were more susceptible to killing by novobiocin than was strain 6800. Strains 6789 and 6806 were killed when treated with novobiocin concentrations of 2, 1/2, and 1/4x MIC. When these strains were also treated with lactoferrin at 3.0 mg/ml, there was a bacteriostatic effect at novobiocin concentrations of 1/8 and 1/16x MIC for strains 6789 and 6800. Strain 6806 appeared to be more susceptible to the combination of lactoferrin and novobiocin as was evidenced by a bactericidal effect over the 24-h testing period. The combination treatment with cephapirin and lactoferrin showed that there was a synergistic bactericidal effect against all of the E. coli strains tested. These studies indicate that lactoferrin can potentiate the activity of antibiotics against Gram-negative bacteria.

Identification of a distinct antibacterial domain within the N-lobe of ovotransferrin

We have evaluated the bactericidal activity of hen ovotransferrin (OTf), which was found to operate regardless of its iron-deprivation properties, with the objective of isolating the bactericidal domain. The amino-terminal half-molecule (N-lobe, residues 1-332) of OTf, isolated by trypsin-nicking, retained the bactericidal activity independently of iron-deprivation, but not the carboxyl-terminal half-molecule (C-lobe, residue 342-686), suggesting the presence of a bactericidal domain within the N-lobe of the molecule. Specific cleavage at the aspartyl residues of OTf, by diluted-acid procedure, yielded fairly large peptides, whereas proteolysis for 150 min produced the strongest bactericidal peptides mixture. The bactericidal domain was purified from the active hydrolysate by gel filtration and reversed-phase HPLC and showed activity against S. aureus as well as E. coli K-12. Electrophoretic analysis on tricine-SDS-PAGE revealed a bactericidal peptide with an average M(r) of 9900 Da under non-reducing conditions. In combination with the specificity of cleavage (Asp-X) and the molecular mass, its N-terminal microsequencing corresponded to a cationic peptide consisting of 92 residues located within the 109-200 sequence of the N-lobe of OTf, containing three intrachain disulfide bridges, featuring a common structural motif occurs in the N-lobes of transferrins for which the sequence is available. Two of the disulfides (C160-C174 and C171-C182) form surface exposed cringle bridges lying on the opposite side of the iron-binding site from the interdomain cleft and showing marked sequence homology to insect defensins, which are blockers of the voltage-dependent K+ channels. The peptide lost antibacterial activity when its disulfide bonds were reduced, indicating the importance of its tertiary structure for the exertion of antibiotic activity.

Forms of lactoferrin: their antibacterial effect on enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli

The antibacterial effects of various forms of lactoferrin on enterotoxigenic strains of Escherichia coli were tested in vitro using a microassay for bacterial growth. Native and apo-lactoferrin exhibited variable activity against 19 strains, whereas holo-lactoferrin had no effect. At a concentration of .2 mg/ml of apo-lactoferrin, strains could be distinguished as either sensitive or resistant to inhibition. Zinc-saturated lactoferrin was as inhibitory as apo-lactoferrin when sensitive and resistant strains were tested over the concentration range .04 to 1.0 mg/ml of lactoferrin. A bactericidal effect was observed for native, apo-, and Zn-saturated lactoferrin against some sensitive strains. The antibacterial activity of apo-lactoferrin depended on bacterial inoculum size and was not enhanced by the addition of lysozyme. Addition of holo-lactoferrin or cytochrome c diminished the antibacterial effect of apo-lactoferrin, whereas addition of BSA had no effect. Resistance to inhibition by lactoferrin was not related to the production of bacterial siderophores.

Killing of gram-negative bacteria by lactoferrin and lysozyme

Although lactoferrin has antimicrobial activity, its mechanism of action is not full defined. Recently we have shown that the protein alters the Gram-negative outer membrane. As this membrane protects Gram-negative cells from lysozyme, we have studied whether lactoferrin's membrane effect could enhance the antibacterial activity of lysozyme. We have found that while each protein alone is bacteriostatic, together they can be bactericidal for strains of V. cholerae, S. typhimurium, and E. coli. The bactericidal effect is dose dependent, blocked by iron saturation of lactoferrin, and inhibited by high calcium levels, although lactoferrin does not chelate calcium. Using differing media, the effect of lactoferrin and lysozyme can be partially or completely inhibited; the degree of inhibition correlating with media osmolarity. Transmission electron microscopy shows that E. coli cells exposed to lactoferrin and lysozyme at 40 mOsm become enlarged and hypodense, suggesting killing through osmotic damage. Dialysis chamber studies indicate that bacterial killing requires direct contact with lactoferrin, and work with purified LPS suggests that this relates to direct LPS-binding by the protein. As lactoferrin and lysozyme are present together in high levels in mucosal secretions and neutrophil granules, it is probable that their interaction contributes to host defense.

Antichlamydial activity of saliva

Saliva collected from adults with no antichlamydial antibodies in their serum or saliva, was tested for its capacity to inhibit the formation of inclusions of Chlamydia trachomatis in McCoy cell cultures. Pooled saliva, diluted in tissue culture medium and sterilized by filtration, was found to reduce the inclusion count by up to about 40%. However, the pretreatment of the chlamydial organisms for 2 hours with diluted saliva caused a 75% decrease in the number of inclusions. The inhibitory activity, which was concentration-dependent, seems to affect the attachment of the chlamydial elementary body to the host cell by acting on both the chlamydiae and the McCoy cells. Saliva did not seem to affect the intracellular development of the chlamydiae. The inhibitory activity was not affected by trypsin treatment, while absorbtion with a gel of a chelating agent caused total loss of the antichlamydial effect. The purpose of our study was to test saliva for its possible antichlamydial activity and to partially characterize the active principle.