Streptococcus suis serotype 2 (Ss2) is an important swine and human zoonotic pathogen. In the present study, we identified a novel secreted immunogenic protein, SsTGase, containing a highly conserved eukaryotic-like transglutaminase (TGase) domain at the N terminus. We found that inactivation of SsTGase significantly reduced the virulence of Ss2 in a pig infection model and impaired its antiphagocytosis in human blood. We further solved the crystal structure of the N-terminal portion of the protein in homodimer form at 2.1 Å. Structure-based mutagenesis and biochemical studies suggested that disruption of the homodimer directly resulted in the loss of its TGase activity and antiphagocytic ability. Characterization of SsTGase as a novel virulence factor of Ss2 by acting as a TGase would be beneficial for developing new therapeutic agents against Ss2 infections.
Keywords: SsTGase; antiphagocytosis; crystal structure; homodimer; microbial pathogenesis; microbiology; transglutaminase; virulence factor.
© 2015 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.