Modulation of expression of delayed hypersensitivity by mycobacterial antigen 85 fibronectin-binding proteins

Antigen 85 complex as a powerful Mycobacterium tuberculosis immunogene: Biology, immune-pathogenicity, applications in diagnosis, and vaccine design

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is one of the most life-threatening mycobacterial species which is increasing the death rate due to emerging multi-drug resistant (MDR) strains. Concerned health authorities worldwide are interested in developing an effective vaccine to prevent the spread of Mtb. After years of research, including successful identification of many Mtb immunogenic molecules, effective therapeutic agents or a vaccine have yet to be found. However, among the identified Mtb immunogenes, antigen 85 (Ag85) complex (Ag85A, Ag85B, and Ag85C) is receiving attention from scientists as it allows bacteria to evade the host immune response by preventing formation of phagolysosomes for eradication of infection. Due to their importance, A85 molecules are being utilized as tools in diagnostic methods and in the construction of new vaccines, such as recombinant attenuated vaccines, DNA vaccines, and subunit vaccines. This paper represents a comprehensive review of studies on Mtb molecules examining pathogenicity, biochemistry, immunology, and the role of Mtb in therapeutic or vaccine research.

Impact of MHC class I alleles on the M. tuberculosis antigen-specific CD8+ T-cell response in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis

Challenged by scattered understanding of protective immunity to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), we have mapped peptide epitopes to human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A*0101, A*0201, A*1101, A*2402, B*0702, B*0801 and B*1501 of the secreted mycobacterial antigen Ag85B, a vaccine candidate that may be associated with immune protection. Affinity (ED(50)) and half-life (t(1/2), off-rate) analysis for individual peptide species on HLA-A and HLA-B molecules revealed binding ranges between 10(-3) and 10(-7) M. After selection of the best matches, major histocompatibility complex class I/peptide tetramer complexes were constructed to measure the CD8+ T-cell responses directly ex vivo in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) derived from 57 patients with acute pulmonary tuberculosis. Three patterns of (allele-) specific CD8+ recognition were identified: (a). Focus on one dominant epitope with additional recognition of several subdominant T-cell epitopes (HLA-A*0301, A*2402, B*0801 and B*1501); (b). Co-dominant recognition of two distinct groups of peptides presented by HLA-B*0702; and (c). Diverse and broad recognition of peptides presented by HLA-A*0201. Peptides that bound with slow off-rates to class I alleles, that is HLA-A*0201, were associated with low frequency of CD8+ T cells in PBMCs from patients with tuberculosis. HLA-B alleles showed fast off-rates in peptide binding and restricted high numbers (up to 6%) of antigen-specific CD8+ T cells in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis.

Combinatorial use of antibodies to secreted mycobacterial proteins in a host immune system-independent test for tuberculosis

Laboratory diagnosis of tuberculosis is often difficult. Immunodetection of circulating Mycobacterium tuberculosis proteins shed during active infection would not depend on an intact host immune response and could take advantage of the speed and low costs afforded by antibody-based assays. We previously showed that patients with active tuberculosis had increased levels of circulating antigen 85 (Ag85) proteins independent of their tuberculin skin test status (S. I. Bentley-Hibbert, X. Quan, T. Newman, K. Huygen, and H. P. Godfrey, Infect. Immun. 67:581-588, 1999). To extend these observations to a Mycobacterium bovis BCG-vaccinated population and to another secreted mycobacterial protein, Ag85 and PstS-1 (protein antigen B, p38 antigen) were quantified in sera from 97 Chilean tuberculosis patients and healthy controls (many of whom had received BCG as children) using dot immunobinding, mouse monoclonal anti-BCG Ag85 complex antibody, and chicken antipeptide antibodies reactive with M. tuberculosis Ag85B and PstS-1. The latter antibodies had been raised to peptide-derived immunogens expressed on a novel proprietary protein carrier in Escherichia coli. Median serum Ag85 levels measured by using either anti-Ag85 antibody were significantly higher in patients with active tuberculosis than in healthy controls (P, <0.001 to 0.01); the median serum PstS-1 levels were similar in patients and controls. The sensitivity of significantly elevated circulating Ag85 levels in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis measured by anti-Ag85 complex or anti-Ag85B antibodies was 60 and 55%, respectively, but increased to 77% when results obtained with both anti-Ag85 antibodies were considered jointly (P < 0.02). The corresponding specificities for individual and joint consideration were 95, 85, and 80%, respectively. These results indicate that elevated Ag85 levels can be detected in patients with active tuberculosis even after BCG vaccination and suggest that combinatorial use of antibodies directed at different epitopes of this protein could provide a viable strategy for developing new host immune response-independent diagnostic tests for tuberculosis.

The domains of human fibronectin mediating the binding of alpha antigen, the most immunopotent antigen of mycobacteria that induces protective immunity against mycobacterial infection

We have recently shown that alpha antigen (alpha-Ag), the immunodominant antigen of mycobacteria, has a novel fibronectin (FN)-binding motif that is unique among mycobacteria [Naito, Ohara, Matsumoto and Yamada (1998) J. Biol. Chem. 273, 2905-2909]. In this study, we examined the domains of human FN that interacted with alpha-Ag. Fragments of FN generated by either proteolysis or recombinant DNA techniques were compared for their ability to bind to alpha-Ag. Fragments containing either the C-terminal heparin-binding domain or the central cell-binding domain consistently bound to alpha-Ag. The fragment of the C-terminal heparin-binding domain, upon mutation that resulted in the loss of its heparin-binding activity, could not bind with alpha-Ag. These findings suggested that the mutated site, i.e. the main heparin-binding site of FN, was also the principal site for binding to alpha-Ag. The alpha-Ag-binding domains of FN could bind whole mycobacterial bacilli, suggesting that these two domains are important contributors to mycobacterial infection.

Pathophysiology of antigen 85 in patients with active tuberculosis: antigen 85 circulates as complexes with fibronectin and immunoglobulin G

Antigen 85 (Ag85) complex proteins are major secretory products of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and induce strong cellular and humoral immune responses in infected experimental animals and human beings. We have previously shown that nanogram doses of these 30- to 32-kDa fibronectin-binding proteins inhibit local expression of delayed hypersensitivity by a T-cell fibronectin-dependent mechanism. Circulating levels of Ag85 might be expected to be elevated in patients with active tuberculosis and possibly to play a role in systemic anergy in these patients. To test this hypothesis, Ag85 was measured in serum and urine by a monoclonal antibody-based dot immunobinding assay in 56 patients and controls with known skin test reactivity. Median serum Ag85 levels were 50- to 150-fold higher in patients with active tuberculosis than in patients with active M. avium-intracellulare disease or other nontuberculous pulmonary disease or in healthy controls (P < 0.001). The median and range of serum Ag85 in patients with active tuberculosis was not significantly different between skin test-positive and -negative subjects. Patients with active M. avium disease could be distinguished from those with disease due to M. tuberculosis by monoclonal anti-Ag85 antibodies of appropriate specificities. No increases in urinary Ag85 were detected in any patient, regardless of the Ag85 level in serum. Chromatographic analysis and immunoprecipitation studies of serum revealed that Ag85 existed in the serum of these patients complexed to either fibronectin or immunoglobulin G (IgG). Uncomplexed circulating Ag85 was demonstrable in serum from fewer than 20% of patients with active tuberculosis. In patients with active tuberculosis, Ag85 is therefore likely to circulate primarily as complexes with plasma fibronectin and IgG rather than in unbound form. The existence of Ag85 complexes with plasma proteins would account for its lack of urinary clearance.

Immunological requirements for a subunit vaccine against tuberculosis

Tuberculosis remains one of the most important threats to world health. Current vaccination and prevention strategies are inadequate and there is an urgent need for a new vaccine. The current vaccine bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG), is unable to protect against re-activation of disease in later life and its efficacy varies tremendously in different human populations. An ideal replacement would be a non-living subunit vaccine that could impart protective efficacy greater than BCG but without its drawbacks. Before such a goal is achieved, however, there are many parameters that need to be examined in experimental systems. Such studies have revealed that apart from the selection of immunologically relevant antigens, dosage of antigen and type of adjuvant need to be chosen carefully. These parameters need to be examined in the context of the complex biology of the disease and, despite recent progress in defining host/pathogen interactions, experimental vaccines tested so far have fallen short of the protective efficacy of BCG. A coordinated approach, stimulating the various facets of cell-mediated immunity will probably be essential for development of protective immunity through subunit vaccination.

Purification of Mycobacterium bovis BCG Tokyo antigens by chromatofocusing, lectin-affinity chromatography, and hydrophobic interaction chromatography

A combination of chromatofocusing, lectin-affinity chromatography, and hydrophobic interaction chromatography resulted in a simple purification of protein antigens of Mycobacterium bovis BCG Tokyo culture filtrate. Identification was established on the basis of chromatographic separation, sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis determination of molecular weights, and N-terminal amino acid determination. Chromatofocusing on PBE 94 accomplished the separation of BCG85B from other BCG85 complex antigens and partial separation of MPB64 and MPB70 antigens. Subsequently, MPB64 and MPB70 were completely separated on a high-performance liquid chromatography TSK Phenyl 5PW hydrophobic interaction chromatography column. This column also separated BCG85B from a 17-kDa protein with an N-terminal amino acid sequence of A-V-P-I-T-G-K-L-G-S-E-L-T-M-T-D-( )-V-G-Q, which is similar to the sequence of MPT63. Concanavalin A-Sepharose-affinity chromatography separated MPB64 from a 43- and 47-kDa doublet with an amino acid sequence of D-P-E-P-A-P-P-V-P-P-V-P-A-( )-A-A-S-P, which is similar to the sequence of MPT32 and which appears to be glycosylated.

Mapping of the delayed-type hypersensitivity-inducing epitope of secreted protein MPT64 from Mycobacterium tuberculosis

The gene encoding the immunogenic protein MPT64 found in culture filtrates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv was expressed in Escherichia coli K-12 and purified as a recombinant protein. The purified recombinant MPT64 elicited delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) in outbred guinea pigs sensitized with Mycobacterium bovis BCG Tokyo. The skin reactions were comparable to those obtained with native MPT64. No skin reactions were observed when either recombinant MPT64 or native MPT64 was used in guinea pigs sensitized with M. bovis BCG Danish 1331. Amino- and carboxy-terminal deletion mutants of MPT64 were purified as fusion proteins for the mapping of DTH-inducing epitopes on recombinant MPT64 by use of the guinea pig skin test model. The part of the molecule responsible for the biological activity was located at the carboxy-terminal end. Further studies with overlapping synthetic peptides have pinpointed the biological activity at a single DTH-inducing epitope consisting of 15 residues between amino acids Gly-173 and Ala-187. Screening by PCR of 56 clinical isolates of M. tuberculosis from Danish and Tanzanian patients demonstrated the presence of mpt64 in all of the strains. These results point to MPT64 as a possible candidate for a skin test reagent specific for diagnosis of human tuberculosis.

Enhancement of delayed hypersensitivity inflammatory reactions in guinea pig skin by 12(R)-hydroxy-5,8,14-eicosatrienoic acid

Delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) reactions are initiated by sensitized T cells. Their progression is dependent upon the local release of various autacoids, including cytokines and eicosanoids, by T cells, infiltrating inflammatory cells, and resident tissue cells. 12(R)-hydroxy-5,8,14-eicosatrienoic acid [12(R)-HETrE], an eicosanoid produced by skin and cornea, possesses potent proinflammatory properties at picomolar concentrations including vasodilation, increase in membrane permeability, neutrophil chemotaxis, and angiogenesis. Because DTH reactions are associated with many of these same phenomena, we examined the effect of 12(R)-HETrE and related 12-hydroxyeicosanoids on the expression of DTH to purified protein derivative of tuberculin in sensitized guinea pigs. In the absence of purified protein derivative of tuberculin, none of the eicosanoids evoked erythema or edema after intradermal injection at doses up to 100 pmol. When injected together with purified protein derivative of tuberculin, 12(R)-hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic acid [12(R)-HETE], but not its enantiomer 12(S)-HETE, significantly inhibited macroscopic expression of delayed reactivity (erythema) only at the highest dose tested, 10 pmol. In contrast, 12(R)-HETrE significantly enhanced expression of DTH at doses between 1 fmol and 1 pmol (50% and 30% increases above control, respectively). Its stereoisomer, 12(S)-HETrE, did not enhance DTH at any tested dose, but was able to block the activity of 12(R)-HETrE when injected simultaneously. Enhancement or inhibition of visible skin responses was not associated with qualitative or quantitative changes in cellular infiltrates at the reaction site. 12(R)-HETrE had no effect on the nonimmunologic inflammatory skin reaction induced by phorbol myristate acetate, suggesting selectivity toward DTH. We conclude that 12(R)-HETrE enhances DTH via a yet to be determined mechanism and that its stereoisomer, 12(S)-HETrE, may be a useful antagonist for studying the inflammatory actions of this eicosanoid.

Inhibition of expression of delayed hypersensitivity by neutralizing monoclonal anti-T-cell fibronectin antibody

T-cell fibronectin (FN) is a unique cellular FN that is rapidly synthesized by memory T cells in response to antigen. Monoclonal anti-T-cell FN antibodies have been used to clarify the role of T-cell FN in the in vivo expression of delayed hypersensitivity. IgGl(kappa) mouse anti-human T-cell FN monoclonal antibodies 231 and 248 recognized epitopes on the FN cell-binding domain, were cross-reactive with plasma FN, and neutralized human and guinea-pig T-cell FN monocyte agglutinating activity. When injected intradermally together with tuberculin or 30 min before topical application of reactive sensitizer, antibody 231 significantly decreased macroscopic expression of guinea-pig delayed hypersensitivity at 24 hr in a dose-dependent manner. Similar doses of antibody 248 caused a slight statistically non-significant enhancement of delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) expression. Inhibition of visible skin responses was not associated with qualitative or quantitative changes in cellular infiltrates at the reaction site. Antibody 231 modulated expression of delayed hypersensitivity in a qualitatively and quantitatively similar manner to the FN-binding mycobacterial antigen 85 proteins. This is consistent with anti-T-cell FN and antigen 85 acting on the same molecule in vivo.

Cloning, sequencing and expression in Escherichia coli of the gene for alpha antigen from Mycobacterium scrofulaceum

The gene for the extracellular alpha antigen of Mycobacterium scrofulaceum (S-alpha) was cloned by using the alpha antigen gene fragments of Mycobacterium bovis BCG as probes. The complete nucleotide sequence was determined. The gene was expressed in Escherichia coli. The gene encodes 330 amino acids, including 40 amino acids for the signal peptide, followed by 290 amino acids for the mature protein. The deduced amino acid sequences were highly homologous to the alpha antigen of the species of other mycobacteria. Interestingly, the alpha antigens of MAIS complex (Mycobacterium avium-Mycobacterium intracellulare-M. scrofulaceum) were closely homologous even at the C-terminal regions which were variable among those of M. bovis BCG, Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium kansasii.

T cell fibronectin and mycobacterial adversarial strategy

Sensitized T cells synthesize and secrete a biochemically and functionally distinct cellular fibronectin in response to antigenic stimulation. This T cell fibronectin is associated with initiation of in vivo delayed hypersensitivity inflammatory reactions. Mycobacterial secretory proteins of the fibronectin-binding antigen 85 complex can bind and inactivate T cell fibronectin, and diminish expression of anti-mycobacterial delayed hypersensitivity. Interaction of T cell fibronectin and antigen 85 provides an additional possible mechanism for tuberculin anergy in patients with clinical tuberculosis.

Mechanism of interaction of the 85B secreted protein of Mycobacterium bovis with fibronectin

The 85B protein of Mycobacterium bovis is a member of the secreted antigen 85 complex, which has been identified in a number of pathogenic mycobacteria. The 85 complex contains three components with molecular masses of 30 to 32 kDa which share the property of binding to fibronectin, a large glycoprotein present in plasma. To investigate this activity we have expressed the M. bovis 85B antigen as a recombinant protein and studied its interaction with human fibronectin. Fibronectin bound to the immobilized 85B protein in a solid-phase enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and in the fluid phase in a radioimmunoassay using 125I-labelled 85B protein. In addition, fibronectin reacted with immobilized 85B in immunoblots and vice versa. Fibronectin also bound to three fragments of a cyanogen bromide digest of 85B which were subsequently identified by N-terminal sequencing. These fragments contained fibronectin-reactive peptides identified in ELISAs utilizing a set of 28 overlapping 20-mer peptides encompassing the 85B sequence. Further studies showed that the 85B protein reacted with a 32-kDa polypeptide from a limited tryptic digest of fibronectin which was identified as the collagen-binding domain. This region was confirmed as the 85B binding site by the fact that gelatin but not heparin inhibited the binding of fibronectin to 85B. These data indicate that the 85B-fibronectin interaction involves the binding of multiple regions of the 85B protein to the collagen-binding domain of fibronectin.

Pharmaceutical characterization of Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine used for the treatment of superficial bladder cancer

Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine, developed in the 1920s as a treatment and prophylactic for tuberculosis, has proved to be a nonspecific stimulant of the immune system and is now the major form of clinical immunotherapy approved for the treatment of superficial bladder cancer in the United States. However, methods for the production and physical characterization of the vaccine have not been significantly developed since Calmette and Guérin first devised their process for attenuating the organism in 1908. When reconstituted with sterile water immediately before use, the vaccine consists of a suspension of cellular fragments and aggregates and a mixture of dead and living cells. The dose is determined by the number of colony-forming units that develop when the vaccine is allowed to grow in a nutrient medium. This measurement of dose and viability is misleading because each cellular aggregate may consist of several hundred individual cells, but only one need be living to give rise to a single visible colony. Viability should therefore be measured on the basis of residual ATP levels. In this report, the mode of action of BCG vaccine against bladder cancer is reviewed, and attention is drawn to some factors that may need to be controlled during manufacturing and subsequent quality assurance procedures. The morphology of the various parts of the complex pleomorphic life cycle of this Mycobacterium species has been investigated, and the vaccine has been physically evaluated to provide a characterization by contemporary methodologies, including measurement of ATP content and particle size distribution of the dispersed mycobacterial aggregates.

Purification of a mycobacterial adhesin for fibronectin

Previous studies have demonstrated that mycobacteria attach to fibronectin (FN). The attachment of mycobacteria to FN is considered to be biologically important in Mycobacterium bovis BCG therapy for superficial bladder cancer, initiation of delayed hypersensitivity to mycobacterial antigens, and the phagocytosis of mycobacteria by epithelial cells. Therefore, we purified the mycobacterial receptor for FN. Culture supernatants from 3-week cultures of Mycobacterium vaccae, which contained proteins that bound FN and inhibited the attachment of both M. vaccae and BCG to FN, were used as a source of receptor. Lyophilized M. vaccae supernatants were reconstituted in 0.02 M bis-Tris (pH 6.0) and applied sequentially to an ACA 54 gel filtration column and a DEAE-Sephacel anion-exchange column. A purified inhibitory protein of 55 kDa (p55) was obtained. The purified p55 protein was observed to bind to FN and to inhibit 125I-FN binding to viable BCG in a dose-dependent manner. Polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies to the protein were generated. The resulting polyclonal antiserum blotted a single protein band at 55 kDa in crude M. vaccae supernatants, cross-reacted with a 55-kDa BCG protein by Western blot (immunoblot), and recognized a 55-kDa band that was associated with the BCG cell wall, which is consistent with its function as a FN receptor. A monoclonal immunoglobulin M(lambda) was isolated from mice immunized with purified M. vaccae p55 protein that was not functional in Western blots but inhibited the attachment of viable BCG to FN. These studies demonstrate that a protein or antigenically related proteins with M(r)s of 55,000 function as FN receptors for at least two distinct mycobacteria.

The antigen 85 complex: a major secretion product of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

The large number of different proteins synthesized by the mycobacterial cell are currently classified and studied in terms of groups of proteins with certain common properties such as physical and chemical characteristics, function, and localization in the mycobacterial cell. Proteins that are actively secreted during culture on synthetic media represent a particular group of great current interest. At least eight proteins secreted by Mycobacterium tuberculosis have been isolated and characterized to various extents. The genes coding for five proteins secreted from M. tuberculosis and/or Mycobacterium bovis BCG have been cloned and sequenced. All of them contain typical signal sequences. The proteins of the antigen 85 complex, which form the main subject of this review, are often the most common proteins in M. tuberculosis culture fluid. The constituents denoted 85A, 85B, and 85C are encoded by three genes located at different sites in the mycobacterial genome and show extensive cross-reactivity as well as homology at amino acid and gene levels. The proteins differ slightly in molecular mass in the 30- to 31-kDa region, and all of them are fibronectin-binding proteins, but the significance of the latter observation and the role of these proteins in mycobacterial physiology and interaction with the infected host remain to be elucidated. The antigen 85 complex proteins are strongly immunogenic in natural and experimental mycobacterial infections in terms of both induction of antibody synthesis and T-cell-mediated reactions. The well-recognized difference in the efficacy of live and dead mycobacterial vaccines should be considered in relation to the group of secreted antigens. After inoculation, live bacteria in vaccines such as BCG multiply in the host, probably releasing several constituents belonging to the class of secreted proteins and hence resulting in more efficient stimulation of the immune system. Secreted mycobacterial antigens are expected to be of particular significance in induction of various immune responses that are responsible for development of protective immunity in some individuals and for clinical symptoms and complications of the ensuing disease in others.