Moraxella catarrhalis isolates express lipooligosaccharide (LOS) molecules on their surface, which share epitopes similar to that of the Neisseria and Haemophilus species. These common LOS epitopes have been implicated in various steps of pathogenesis for the different organisms. In this study, a cluster of three LOS glycosyltransferase genes (lgt) were identified in M. catarrhalis 7169, a strain that produces a serotype B LOS. Mutants in these glycosyltransferase genes were constructed, and the resulting LOS phenotypes were consistent with varying degrees of truncation compared to wild-type LOS. The LOS structures of each lgt mutant were no longer detected by a monoclonal antibody (MAb 4G5) specific to a highly conserved terminal epitope nor by a monoclonal antibody (MAb 3F7) specific to the serotype B LOS side chain. Mass spectrometry of the LOS glycoforms assembled by two of these lgt mutants indicated that lgt1 encodes an ␣(1-2) glucosyltransferase and the lgt2 encodes a ␤(1-4) galactosyltransferase. However, these structural studies could not delineate the function for lgt3. Therefore, M. catarrhalis lgt3 was introduced into a defined ␤(1-4) glucosyltransferase Haemophilus ducreyi 35000glu؊ mutant in trans, and monoclonal antibody analysis confirmed that Lgt3 complemented the LOS defect. These data suggest that lgt3 encodes a glucosyltransferase involved in the addition of a ␤(1-4)-linked glucose to the inner core. Furthermore, we conclude that this enzymatic step is essential for the assembly of the complete LOS glycoform expressed by M. catarrhalis 7169.Moraxella catarrhalis is a gram-negative human respiratory pathogen that causes 15 to 20% of acute otitis media in children (56). In addition, this bacterium is responsible for 10 to 35% of lower respiratory infections in adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the fourth leading cause of death in the United States (20). The emergence of M. catarrhalis as an important human pathogen has occurred in the past 15 years due to the increasing prevalence of ␤-lactamase-positive strains, the high incidence of recurrent infections despite successful antibiotic treatment, and the lack of an effective vaccine (10,39,50,56). Another factor that likely contributes to the persistence of M. catarrhalis disease is the lack of understanding of the basic bacterial factors and mechanisms that promote colonization and survival in the host.Although there have been a number of putative virulence factors described for M. catarrhalis, the actual role of these components in pathogenesis remains largely undefined (13,19,20,31,53). One of the most prominent surface components expressed in the outer membrane of this bacterium is the lipooligosaccharide (LOS) (12). The LOS of M. catarrhalis is similar to the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of other gram-negative organisms, but it lacks a repeating O antigen (21). Previous studies have suggested that LOS is important for the pathogenesis of other respiratory pathogens, such as Neisseria meningitidis and Haemophilus influenzae, aid...

A heterologous cluster of glycosyltransferase genes was identified in the three Moraxella catarrhalis LOS serotype strains. Multiple PCR primers designed to this region amplified products that differentiate between the serotypes more rapidly and efficiently than previously described serological analyses. This assay will be valuable for clinical and research-based studies.Moraxella catarrhalis, a gram-negative diplococcus, is considered a significant cause of acute otitis media in children and lower respiratory infections in adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (12,21,29). A number of putative virulence factors have been described for M. catarrhalis (8,11,12,17,20), including a surface-exposed lipooligosaccharide (LOS) (6,18,23,32). Structural and serological studies with M. catarrhalis have described only three different LOS serotypes (termed A, B, and C), which vary in length and content of the oligosaccharide branches (3-5, 13, 15, 28). One serological study by Vaneechoutte et al. grouped clinical isolates into serotypes A (60%), B (30%), and C (5%), with 5% of the strains unidentified (28). That has been the only study to investigate the prevalence of specific M. catarrhalis LOS serotypes in the population. The difficulties with serological determinations of M. catarrhalis LOS expression are the limited quantities of antibodies, the absolute requirement for purified sample, and the potential for cross-reactivity between serotypes A and C (13,24,25).Recently, a cluster of three glycosyltransferase (lgt) genes were identified and characterized in a strain of M. catarrhalis 7169 expressing serotype B LOS (6). Primers 406 and 408 (Table 1) designed to this region were subsequently used in PCRs with chromosomal DNA from M. catarrhalis 25238, the previously defined LOS serotype A strain, and M. catarrhalis RS10, the previously defined LOS serotype C strain (Table 2) (3, 4). PCR was performed in 50-l reaction mixtures containing PCR SuperMix (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA), 20 pmol/l of each primer, and 1 l chromosomal DNA prepared as previously described (26). Amplifications were performed in a GeneAmp PCR system 9700 (Applied Biosystems, Foster City, CA) according to the manufacturer's protocol for 25 cycles with an annealing temperature of 53.1°C and extension time of 4 min. Primers 406 and 408 (Table 1) produced an amplicon of 4.3 kb in serotype A and C strains, which was 1 kb larger than the product amplified in the serotype B strain, 7169 (data not shown).Sequence analyses (MacVector 7.2 software; Accelrys, San Diego, CA) of the entire region amplified by primer 406 and flanking primer 704 (Table 1) identified an additional open reading frame upstream of the original lgt cluster described in 7169 and in the same orientation as lgt1, as illustrated in Fig. 1A and C. A ClustalW alignment with the translated sequence of this open reading frame (Lgt4) in both strains revealed 46% identity and 60% similarity to Lgt1, an ␣(1-2) glucosyltransferase in M. catarrhalis 7169 (6). The 5Ј end of this cluster...

BackgroundViral capsid assembly involves the oligomerization of the capsid nucleoprotein (NP), which is an essential step in viral replication and may represent a potential antiviral target. An in vitro transcription-translation reaction using a wheat germ (WG) extract in combination with a sandwich ELISA assay has recently been used to identify small molecules with antiviral activity against the rabies virus.ResultsHere, we examined the application of this system to viruses with capsids with a different structure, such as the Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV), the etiological agent of a severe emerging infectious disease. The biochemical and immunological characterization of the in vitro-generated RVFV NP assembly products enabled the distinction between intermediately and highly ordered capsid structures. This distinction was used to establish a screening method for the identification of potential antiviral drugs for RVFV countermeasures.ConclusionsThese results indicated that this unique analytical system, which combines nucleoprotein oligomerization with the specific immune recognition of a highly ordered capsid structure, can be extended to various viral families and used both to study the early stages of NP assembly and to assist in the identification of potential antiviral drugs in a cost-efficient manner.ReviewersReviewed by Jeffry Skolnick and Noah Isakov. For the full reviews please go to the Reviewers’ comments section.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13062-016-0126-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Moraxella catarrhalis is a causative agent of otitis media in children and lower respiratory tract infections in adults suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This strict human pathogen continues to be a significant cause of disease in this broad spectrum of patients because there is no available vaccine. Although numerous putative vaccine antigens have been described, little is known about the human immune response to M. catarrhalis infection in vivo. Human serum antibodies are directed at a number of surface proteins, and lipooligosaccharides (LOS) and detoxified LOS may be an effective immunogen in mice. In this study, we used a specific LOS-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), containing the three major M. catarrhalis serotypes together with a complete series of truncated LOS mutants, to detect the development of new antibodies to specific regions of the oligosaccharide molecule. We compared serum samples from COPD patients who had recently cleared an M. catarrhalis infection to serum samples collected prior to their infection. Variability in the antibody response to LOS was observed, as some patients developed serotype-specific antibodies, others developed antibodies to the LOS of each serotype, others developed broadly cross-reactive antibodies, and some did not develop new antibodies. These newly developed human antibodies are directed at both side chains and core structures in the LOS molecule. This LOS-based ELISA can be used to dissect the human antibody response to both internal and external carbohydrate epitopes, thus providing a better understanding of the humoral immune response to M. catarrhalis LOS epitopes developed during natural infection.

The human respiratory tract pathogen Moraxella catarrhalis expresses lipooligosaccharides (LOS), glycolipid surface moieties that are associated with enhanced colonization and virulence. Recent studies have delineated the major steps required for the biosynthesis and assembly of the M. catarrhalis LOS molecule. We previously demonstrated that the glucosyltransferase enzyme Lgt3 is responsible for the addition of at least one glucose (Glc) molecule, at the β-(1-4) position, to the inner core of the LOS molecule. Our data further suggested a potential multifunctional role for Lgt3 in LOS biosynthesis. The studies reported here demonstrate that the Lgt3 enzyme possesses two glycosyltransferase domains (A1 and A2) similar to that of other bifunctional glycosyltransferase enzymes involved in surface polysaccharide biosynthesis in Escherichia coli, Pasteurella multocida and Streptococcus pyogenes. Each Lgt3 domain contains a conserved DXD motif, shown to be involved in the catalytic activity of other glycosyltransferases. To determine the function of each domain, A1 (N-terminal), A2 (C-terminal) and double A1A2 site-directed DAD to AAA mutants were constructed and the resulting LOS phenotypes of these modified strains were analyzed. Our studies indicate that the Lgt3 N-terminal A1 catalytic domain is responsible for the addition of the first β-(1-3) Glc to the first Glc on the inner core. The C-terminal catalytic domain A2 then adds the β-(1-4) Glc and the β-(1-6) Glc, confirming the bifunctional nature of this domain. The results from these experiments demonstrate that Lgt3 is a novel, multifunctional transferase responsible for the addition of three Glcs with differing linkages onto the inner core of M. catarrhalis LOS.