Abstract
Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) is both a superantigen and toxin. As a superantigen, SEB can bind to major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II molecules to form a ligand for alpha/beta T cell receptors bearing particular V beta elements. As a toxin, SEB causes rapid weight loss in mice sometimes leading to death. We show here that both of these functions map to the NH2-terminal portion of the toxin. Three regions were identified: one important in MHC class II binding, one in T cell recognition, and one in both functions. These results support the conclusion that the toxicity of SEB is related to massive T cell stimulation and release of cytokine mediators and show that the residues interacting with MHC and the T cell receptor are intertwined.
Publication types
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Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.
MeSH terms
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Amino Acid Sequence
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Animals
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Antibodies, Monoclonal / immunology
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Base Sequence
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DNA Mutational Analysis*
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DNA, Bacterial / genetics
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Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel
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Enterotoxins / genetics*
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Enterotoxins / immunology
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Enterotoxins / toxicity
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Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
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Epitopes / immunology
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Escherichia coli / genetics
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Gene Expression
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HLA-DR Antigens / immunology
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Mice
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Molecular Sequence Data
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Polymerase Chain Reaction
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Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta / immunology
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Recombinant Proteins / genetics
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Recombinant Proteins / immunology
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Recombinant Proteins / toxicity
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Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid
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Staphylococcus aureus / genetics*
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Staphylococcus aureus / immunology
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T-Lymphocytes / immunology
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Transfection
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Weight Loss / drug effects
Substances
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Antibodies, Monoclonal
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DNA, Bacterial
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Enterotoxins
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Epitopes
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HLA-DR Antigens
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Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta
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Recombinant Proteins
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enterotoxin B, staphylococcal