Glycobiology, 2000, Vol. 10, No. 1 31-37
© 2000 Oxford University Press
Purification and characterization of an adhesin from Pasteurella haemolytica
CENID-Microbiología, Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales y Agropecuarias, SAGAR. Mexico, 2Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Respiratorias, Secretaría de Salud, México, 3Laboratoire de Chimie Biologique, UMR 8576 du CNRS, Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille, 59655 Villeneuve d’Ascq, France, 4Departamento de Patología, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, UNAM, México, and 5Departamento de Bioquímica, Facultad de Medicina UNAM, PO Box 70159, 04510 Mexico DF
We purified an adhesin from Pasteurella. haemolytica by affinity chromatography using glutaraldehyde treated rabbit erythrocytes stroma. The adhesin is a protein of 68 kDa, as determined by SDS–PAGE, and the most abundant amino acids constituting this protein were Gly, Ser, Glx, and Ala, and low concentrations of Cys, Met, and Tyr residues were also found. The N-terminal sequence of the adhesin is ANEVNVYIYKQPYLI. No carbohydrate residues were detected. The adhesin agglutinated rabbit erythrocytes but when the latter were desialylated or pronase treated the agglutinating activity was abolished. The agglutinating activity of the adhesin was inhibited with N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (GlcNAc), and in a lesser degree with N-acetyl-neuraminic acid (NeuAc). GalNAc, N-glycolyl-neuraminic acid, N-deacetylated GlcNAc, or neutral sugars do not modify the activity of the adhesin. The equatorial -OH on C4 and the NH-acetylated group on C2 from GlcNAc, as well as the 4-OH and NH-acetylated group on C5 from NeuAc seem to be responsible for the interaction with the adhesin. The protein is divalent cation-dependent and thermolabile. As for the agglutinating activity, the adhesion of P.haemolytica to tracheal cell-cultures was inhibited by GlcNAc, NeuAc or the purified adhesin, strongly suggesting that the P.haemolytica adhesin plays an important role in infection.