MtsB, a hydrophobic membrane protein of Streptococcus iniae, is an effective subunit vaccine candidate

Streptococcus iniae is a major bacterium that causes invasive disease in cultured fish worldwide. The protection relies mainly on anti-microbial compounds and vaccines, and there is much interest in developing S. iniae vaccine based on conserved protein immunogens. Subcellular localization of protein has important influence on its immunogenicity. The surface and extracellular proteins of pathogenic bacteria can be easily recognized by the infected host compare to intracellular proteins, which are the feasible vaccine development targets. However, a putative hydrophobic membrane protein (designated MtsB) of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter system was found to be protective against S. iniae HD-1 infection when used as an injection vaccine administered intraperitoneally into tilapia. The MtsB protein is present on the cytoplasmic membrane and is expressed in vivo during Kunming mice infection by S. iniae HD-1. This is believed to be the first report on the use of a hydrophobic membrane protein of the ABC system as an S. iniae subunit vaccine.