Functional dissection of protein domains involved in the immunomodulatory properties of PE_PGRS33 of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

In this study, PE_PGRS33 and its functional deletion mutants were expressed in M. smegmatis, and in vitro and in vivo assays were used to dissect the protein domains involved in the immunomodulatory properties of the protein. We demonstrate that PE_PGRS33‐mediated secretion of TNF‐α by macrophages occurs by extracellular interaction with TLR2. Our results also show that while the PGRS domain of the protein is required for triggering TNF‐α secretion, mutation in the PE domain affects the pro‐inflammatory properties of the protein. These results indicate that PE_PGRS33 is a protein with immunomodulatory activity and that protein stability and localization on the mycobacterial surface can affect these properties.

Source: FEMS Immunology and Medical Microbiology - October 7, 2013 Category: Microbiology Authors: Antonella Zumbo, Ivana Palucci, Alessandro Cascioferro, Michela Sali, Marcello Ventura, Pamela D'Alfonso, Raffaella Iantomasi, Gabriele Di Sante, Francesco Ria, Maurizio Sanguinetti, Giovanni Fadda, Riccardo Manganelli, Giovanni Delogu Tags: Research Article Source Type: research