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A Novel MSCRAMM Subfamily in Coagulase Negative Staphylococcal Species

Srishtee Arora1, Anne-Catrin Uhlemann2, Franklin D Lowy2

  • 1Center for Infectious and Inflammatory Diseases, Institute of Biosciences and Technology, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Houston TX, USA.

Frontiers in Microbiology
|May 21, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Researchers discovered SesJ, a novel chimeric protein in Staphylococcus epidermidis. This protein, a new type of Microbial Surface Components Recognizing Adhesive Matrix Molecules (MSCRAMM), is constitutively expressed and may play a role in S. epidermidis virulence.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Structural Biology
  • Pathogenesis

Background:

  • Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) are significant opportunistic pathogens.
  • Staphylococcus epidermidis is a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections.
  • Microbial Surface Components Recognizing Adhesive Matrix Molecules (MSCRAMMs) are key virulence factors in Gram-positive bacteria.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify and characterize novel surface proteins in S. epidermidis.
  • To investigate the structural features and distribution of a newly identified protein, SesJ.
  • To understand the potential role of SesJ in S. epidermidis virulence.

Main Methods:

  • Bioinformatic analysis to identify and predict the structure of SesJ.
  • Comparative analysis of SesJ homologs in other CoNS species.
  • Flow cytometry to determine SesJ surface expression levels in S. epidermidis.

Main Results:

  • A novel chimeric protein, SesJ, was identified in S. epidermidis, representing a new MSCRAMM subfamily.
  • SesJ possesses unique structural features, including N-terminal and C-terminal repeat regions, not previously seen in staphylococcal MSCRAMMs.
  • Structural homologs of SesJ were found in other CoNS, sharing identical organization but varying sequence identities.
  • SesJ is constitutively expressed on the S. epidermidis surface throughout its growth phases.

Conclusions:

  • SesJ is a novel MSCRAMM prototype with unique structural characteristics.
  • The constitutive expression of SesJ suggests its importance in S. epidermidis-host interactions.
  • SesJ likely contributes to the virulence of S. epidermidis by interacting with environmental targets.
Keywords:
MSCRAMMN-terminal repeatsStaphylococcus epidermidiscell wall anchored proteinscoagulase negative staphylococcistructural homologs

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