Clostridium difficile toxin A inhibits the kinase activity of extracellular signal-related kinases 1 and 2 through direct binding

J Microbiol Biotechnol. 2012 Feb;22(2):170-5. doi: 10.4014/jmb.1110.10075.

Abstract

Clostridium difficile toxin A glucosylates Rho family proteins, resulting in actin filament disaggregation and cell rounding in cultured colonocytes. Given that the cellular toxicity of toxin A is dependent on its receptor binding and subsequent entry into the cell, we herein sought to identify additional colonocyte proteins that might bind to toxin A following its internalization. Our results revealed that toxin A interacted with ERK1 and ERK2 in two human colonocyte cell lines (NCM460 and HT29). A GST-pulldown assay also showed that toxin A can directly bind to ERK1 and ERK2. In NCM460 cells exposed to PMA (an ERK1/2 activator), the phosphorylation of ERK1/2 did not affect the interaction between toxin A and ERK1/2. However, an in vitro kinase assay showed that the direct binding of toxin A to ERK1 or ERK2 inhibited their kinase activities. These results suggest a new molecular mechanism for the cellular toxicity seen in cells exposed to toxin A.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Bacterial Toxins / metabolism*
  • Cell Line
  • Clostridioides difficile / pathogenicity*
  • Enterotoxins / metabolism*
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / metabolism*
  • Epithelial Cells / drug effects
  • Humans
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 1 / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 1 / metabolism
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 3 / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 3 / metabolism
  • Protein Binding

Substances

  • Bacterial Toxins
  • Enterotoxins
  • Enzyme Inhibitors
  • tcdA protein, Clostridium difficile
  • MAPK1 protein, human
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 1
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 3