Analysis of cytotoxins of Vibrio vulnificus

• Main Authors: Wan-Hsui Chang, 張莞詡
• Other Authors: Dr. Yu-Chung Chen
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2013
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/17013026506293525000

碩士 === 嘉南藥理科技大學 === 生物科技系 === 101 === Vibrio vulnificus is a human pathogen. It causes serious wound infection and fatal septicemia. The cytotoxicity is regarded as the important mechanism in the pathogenesis of this bacterium infection. V. vulnificus RtxA toxin is composed of 4701 amino acids wiht a molecuar mass of ~501 kDa. The rtxA inactivation resulted in decrease in cytotoxicity of Vibrio vulnificus in host cells. In previous studies, we found that the h contributes cytotoxicity to V. vulnificus in macrophages. To examine the cytotoxic effect of RtxA and H toxins of V. vulnificus on macrophages, macrophages were treated with V. vulnificus strains lacking rtxA or h or rtxA/h or culture supernatants of the mutants. The mutants lacking rtxA, h or rtxA/h induced a significant decrease of cytotoxicity as compared with wild type. In addition, the culture supernatant of h or rtxA/h mutants did not cause a significant cytotoxicity, while the culture supernatant of rtxA mutant induced similar levels of cytotoxicity as the wild type. These results indicated that H is a major cytotoxin in culture supernatant of V. vulnificus in this study.