Surface polysaccharide mutants reveal that absence of O antigen reduces biofilm formation of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae.
File(s)
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae is a Gram-negative bacterium belonging to the Pasteurellaceae family and the causative agent of porcine pleuropneumonia, a highly contagious lung disease causing important economic losses. Surface polysaccharides including lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and capsular polysaccharides (CPS) are implicated in the adhesion and virulence of A. pleuropneumoniae, but their role in biofilm formation is still unclear. In this study, we investigated the requirement of these surface polysaccharides in biofilm formation by A. pleuropneumoniae serotype 1. Well characterized mutants were used: an O-antigen LPS mutant, a truncated core-LPS mutant with an intact O-antigen, a capsule mutant and a poly-N-acetylglucosamine (PGA) mutant. We compared the amount of biofilm produced by the parental strain and the isogenic mutants using static and dynamic systems. Compared to the parental or other strains, the biofilm of the O-antigen and the PGA mutants was dramatically reduced and it had less cell-associated PGA. Real-time PCR analyses revealed a significant reduction in the level of pgaA, cpxR and cpxA mRNA in the biofilm cells of the O-antigen mutant compared to the parental strain. Specific binding between PGA and LPS was consistently detected by surface plasmon resonance but the lack of O-antigen did not abolish these interactions. In conclusion, the absence of the O-antigen reduces the ability of A. pleuropneumoniae to form a biofilm and this is associated with a reduction in the expression and the production of PGA.
Date Issued
2015-12-28
Date Acceptance
2015-10-19
Citation
Infection and Immunity, 2015, 84 (1), pp.127-137
ISSN
1098-5522
Publisher
American Society for Microbiology
Start Page
127
End Page
137
Journal / Book Title
Infection and Immunity
Volume
84
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
Copyright © 2015, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Sponsor
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)
Pfizer Limited (UK)
Identifier
PII: IAI.00912-15
Grant Number
BB/G018553/1
N/A
Subjects
Microbiology
06 Biological Sciences
11 Medical And Health Sciences
07 Agricultural And Veterinary Sciences
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2015-12-28