A cross-reactive monoclonal antibody to nematode haemoglobin enhances protective immune responses to Nippostrongylus brasiliensis

Nieuwenhuizen, Natalie E., Meter, Jeanne M., Horsnell, William G., Hoving, J. Claire, Fick, Lizette, Sharp, Michael, Darby, Matthew G., Brombacher, Frank, and Lopata, Andreas L. (2013) A cross-reactive monoclonal antibody to nematode haemoglobin enhances protective immune responses to Nippostrongylus brasiliensis. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 7 (8). e2395. pp. 1-14.

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Abstract

Background: Nematode secreted haemoglobins have unusually high affinity for oxygen and possess nitric oxide deoxygenase, and catalase activity thought to be important in protection against host immune responses to infection. In this study, we generated a monoclonal antibody (48Eg) against haemoglobin of the nematode Anisakis pegreffii, and aimed to characterize cross-reactivity of 4E8g against haemoglobins of different nematodes and its potential to mediate protective immunity against a murine hookworm infection.

Methodology/Principal Findings: Immunoprecipitation was used to isolate the 4E8g-binding antigen in Anisakis and Ascaris extracts, which were identified as haemoglobins by peptide mass fingerprinting and MS/MS. Immunological cross-reactivity was also demonstrated with haemoglobin of the rodent hookworm N. brasiliensis. Immunogenicity of nematode haemoglobin in mice and humans was tested by immunoblotting. Anisakis haemoglobin was recognized by IgG and IgE antibodies of Anisakis-infected mice, while Ascaris haemoglobin was recognized by IgG but not IgE antibodies in mouse and human sera. Sequencing of Anisakis haemoglobin revealed high similarity to haemoglobin of a related marine nematode, Psuedoterranova decipiens, which lacks the four -HKEE repeats of Ascaris haemoglobin important in octamer assembly. The localization of haemoglobin in the different parasites was examined by immunohistochemistry and associated with the excretory-secretary ducts in Anisakis, Ascaris and N. brasiliensis. Anisakis haemoglobin was strongly expressed in the L3 stage, unlike Ascaris haemoglobin, which is reportedly mainly expressed in adult worms. Passive immunization of mice with 4E8g prior to infection with N. brasiliensis enhanced protective Th2 immunity and led to a significant decrease in worm burdens.

Conclusion: The monoclonal antibody 4E8g targets haemoglobin in broadly equivalent anatomical locations in parasitic nematodes and enhances host immunity to a hookworm infection.

Item ID: 30177
Item Type: Article (Research - C1)
ISSN: 1935-2735
Additional Information:

© 2013 Nieuwenhuizen et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Funders: National Research Foundation, South Africa, Medical Research Council of South Africa, Allergy Society of South Africa, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), Claude Leon Foundation, Australian Research Council (ARC)
Date Deposited: 13 Nov 2013 05:42
FoR Codes: 11 MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES > 1101 Medical Biochemistry and Metabolomics > 110106 Medical Biochemistry: Proteins and Peptides (incl Medical Proteomics) @ 50%
11 MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES > 1107 Immunology > 110701 Allergy @ 50%
SEO Codes: 92 HEALTH > 9201 Clinical Health (Organs, Diseases and Abnormal Conditions) > 920108 Immune System and Allergy @ 50%
92 HEALTH > 9201 Clinical Health (Organs, Diseases and Abnormal Conditions) > 920109 Infectious Diseases @ 50%
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