Introduction of cloned genes into Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Construction of Opa-positive and Opa-negative strains of Neisseria meningitidis to evaluate a novel meningococcal vaccine

Neisseria meningitidis is a major global pathogen causing invasive disease with a mortality of 5-10%. Most disease in developed countries is caused by serogroup B infection, against which there is no universal vaccine. Opacity-associated adhesin (Opa) proteins are major meningococcal outer membrane proteins, which have shown recent promise as a potential novel vaccine. Immunisation of mice with different Opa variants elicited high levels of meningococcal-specific bactericidal antibodies, demonstrating proof in principle for this approach. Opa proteins are critical in meningococcal pathogenesis, mediating bacterial adherence to host cells, and modulating human cellular immunity via interactions with T cells and neutrophils, although there are conflicting data regarding their effects on CD4(+) T cells. We constructed Opa-positive and Opa-negative meningococcal strains to allow further evaluation of Opa as a vaccine component. All four opa genes from N. meningitidis strain H44/76 were sequentially disrupted to construct all possible combinations of N. meningitidis strains deficient in one, two, three, or all four opa genes. The transformations demonstrated that homologous recombination of exogenous DNA into the meningococcal chromosome can occur with as little as 80 bp, and that minor sequence differences are permissible. Anti-Opa bactericidal antibody responses following immunisation of mice with recombinant Opa were specific to the Opa variant used in immunisation. No immunomodulatory effects were observed when Opa was contained within meningococcal outer membrane vesicles (OMVs), compared to Opa-negative OMVs. These observations support the incorporation of Opa in meningococcal vaccines.

A broad-host-range vector of incompatibility group Q can work as a plasmid vector in Neisseria meningitidis: a new genetical tool

Plasmid pHT128, a derivative of the broad-host-range IncQ vector pGSS33, was successfully introduced into Neisseria meningitidis. Under optimal conditions, pHT128 was transferred from Escherichia coli to N. meningitidis by triparental conjugation at a frequency of 10(-5)-10(-6). The copy number of pHT128 in N. meningitidis was almost the same as in E. coli, in which the copy number of IncQ plasmids per chromosome is estimated to be 10. pHT128 was maintained as an episome in N. meningitidis in the presence of chloramphenicol, a marker of the plasmid. It was also shown that an opc or pilE1 gene cloned on pHT128 could be expressed in N. meningitidis under control of the tac promoter and could complement a mutation of opc or pilE1, respectively. In addition, the conjugational introduction of pHT128 into N. meningitidis was demonstrated to be independent of natural transformation competence. All the results indicate that pHT128 is a useful vector for N. meningitidis as a new genetical tool.

Characterization of lbpA, the structural gene for a lactoferrin receptor in Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Neisseria gonorrhoeae acquires iron (Fe) efficiently from lactoferrin (LF). A 103-kDa gonococcal outer membrane LF-binding protein (Lbp) was identified previously. We isolated the structural gene lbpA for Lbp1 by screening a gonococcal library for a clone that could repair an LF- receptor mutant. An mTnCm3 transposon insertion mutant of lbpA was unable to use LF-bound Fe for growth, unable to bind LF to whole cells, and unable to express Lbp1. The DNA sequence of lbpA predicted a protein that shared 94% identity with the meningococcal LF receptor protein, Lbp, and was closely related to Tbp1, one of the transferrin receptor proteins. Clinical isolates of gonococci are frequently unable to acquire Fe from LF, and LF- isolates do not have a functional LF receptor. The wild-type lbpA gene transformed most tested LF- clinical isolates to LF+, indicating that lbpA is defective in many clinical isolates.

Construction of a multivalent meningococcal vaccine strain based on the class 1 outer membrane protein

Outer membrane complexes (OMCs) are promising vaccine candidates for protection against meningococcal disease. However, a major obstacle to this approach is the fact that the protective antibodies induced are generally type specific. In an attempt to overcome this problem, we have investigated the possibility of constructing a multivalent vaccine strain by insertion of an additional class 1 outer membrane protein-encoding gene. Starting with a derivative of strain H44/76 deficient in class 3 outer membrane protein, a second class 1 gene was inserted into the chromosome, through homologous recombination with a suicide plasmid carrying the class 1 gene from strain 2996 placed within a class 5 gene. In this way, a strain was obtained in which a class 3 protein was in effect replaced by a class 1 protein from another subtype, i.e. P1.5,2 in addition to the P1.7,16 protein of H44/76. Immunization of mice with such OMCs resulted in high bactericidal titers against both H44/76 and 2996, where normally only strain-specific antibodies are induced. Mutational removal of class 3 protein from the immunizing OMCs had no detectable effect on the bactericidal titer against H44/76, whereas removal of class 1 protein led to a strong reduction. These results demonstrate the dominant role of the subtype-specific sequences of class 1 protein in the induction of bactericidal antibodies and show that construction of a multivalent OMC-based vaccine should be feasible.

Construction of a Neisseria gonorrhoeae MS11 derivative deficient in NgoMI restriction and modification

We have cloned from Neisseria gonorrhoeae MS11 the gene encoding a methylase that modifies the sequence GCCGGC. The corresponding restriction enzyme was also encoded by this clone. Sequence analysis demonstrated that the methylase shares sequence similarities with other cytosine methylases, but the sequence organization of M.NgoMI is different from that seen for other cytosine methylases. A deletion was introduced into the chromosome of N. gonorrhoeae MS11 to produce strain MUG701, a strain that is inactivated in both the methylase and the restriction genes. Although this strain no longer methylated its DNA at the NgoMI recognition sequence, cells were viable and had no other significant phenotypic changes. Transformation data indicated that MS11 does not produce enough restriction activity to block plasmid transformation in the gonococcus, even though restriction activity could be demonstrated in E. coli containing the cloned gene.

Analysis of the lsi region involved in lipooligosaccharide biosynthesis in Neisseria gonorrhoeae

The genetic locus (lsi-1) responsible for the transformation of the lipooligosaccharide (LOS)-defective Neisseria gonorrhoeae mutant FA5100 to LOS expression was studied by deletion mutagenesis and sequence analysis. An open reading frame that was preceded by a leader sequence containing regions with the potential to form hairpin loops was identified. A perfect sigma 70 promoter consensus sequence was found upstream from this open reading frame. Promoter function was screened for functionality by using lac fusion cassettes and in vitro transcription-translation analysis. A frameshift mutation in the lsi-1 gene was constructed by site-directed mutagenesis and introduced into the chromosome of FA19, the LOS-expressing isogenic parent strain of FA5100. The mutant was characterized by Southern blotting, sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and Western blotting (immunoblotting) and found to be phenotypically identical to FA5100.