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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, January 2003, p. 285-289, Vol. 41, No. 1
0095-1137/03/$08.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JCM.41.1.285-289.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
Received 1 July 2002/ Returned for modification 3 September 2002/ Accepted 10 October 2002
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We used genomic subtraction to search for new virulence gene candidates for UTI pathogenesis. Genomic subtraction is a PCR-based method to subtract gene sequences that are common between a "tester" and "driver" strain and yield sequences that are unique to the tester strain. This procedure is based on suppressive subtractive hybridization (6). Strain pairs were selected from our UPEC and rectal E. coli specimen collections (reviewed in reference 13) based on molecular epidemiologic information in order to maximize the potential of identifying new virulence gene candidates. For this subtraction, we selected a first-UTI-causing E. coli strain, 1128-11, as the tester and UTI strains 366-11 (used in a previous subtraction and described in reference 17) and CFT073 as the combined drivers. The resulting gene fragments were screened against our pathogenic and nonpathogenic E. coli collections in order to determine their potential significance in UPEC.
We describe our successful use of this strategy to identify a heat-resistant agglutinin gene (hra) associated with UTI. The identified hra gene is 91% homologous to a gene found on RS218, the sequenced E. coli meningitis strain.
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(ii) Driver. The choice of driver strain was determined by our aim to find new genetic regions that had not been discovered through our initial subtraction (17). Therefore, we chose the tester strain of the previous subtraction, 366-11, as the driver. To avoid finding genes that have already been discovered and sequenced, we also included the newly sequenced pyelonephritis-causing E. coli strain CFT073 in our driver.
Genomic subtraction. A commercial kit (Clontech PCR-Select bacterial genome subtraction kit) was used to identify gene fragments specific to the tester strain through differential cloning. The genomic DNA of drivers (366-11 and CFT073) was subtracted from that of the tester (1128-11) following manufacturer's protocols to obtain tester-specific DNA. A high-copy-number plasmid specific to the 1128-11 tester strain was added to the driver DNA 366-11 to suppress its overrepresentation in the final tester specific fragments.
Briefly, genomic DNA was isolated from tester (1128-11) and driver (366-11 and CFT-073) strains, purified using phenol-chloroform extraction, and digested with RsaI. Following purification of the digested DNA, the tester DNA was ligated with the adapter provided with the kit. The tester-specific DNA (sPCR) fragments were cloned into PCR2.1 plasmid vector using the TOPO TA cloning kit (Invitrogen) and transformed. The transformants were tested for inserts by PCR using M13R and T7 primers, which flank the cloned insert regions, followed by a nested PCR using nested primers supplied with the genomic subtraction kit. The sPCR products were spotted on nylon membranes and probed with fluorescence-labeled tester genomic DNA and driver genomic DNA using a commercially available kit (ECF random prime labeling and detection kit; Amersham). sPCR fragments that bound to both tester and driver DNA were removed from further analysis. Duplicate sPCR fragments were removed by cross-hybridization among all the tester specific sPCR fragments.
Genome walking.
The regions flanking the hra gene in 1128-11 were obtained by PCR using a commercial Genome Walker kit (Clontech Inc.). Briefly, the method involves ligation of adapters to purified uncloned libraries of genomic DNA digested with different restriction enzymes. The adapter primers provided in the kit and two sets of primers specific to hra were used to PCR regions upstream and downstream of the hra gene according to manufacturer's specifications. The primers for the primary PCR were HRAP1 (5'-CCAGAGCGATATCCGGGGTTACGTCATA-3') and HRAP2 (5'-TATGACGTAACCCCGGATATC-GCTCTGG-3'). The conditions for PCR in the PE Biosystems 9600 thermal cycler were as follows: seven cycles of 2 s at 94°C and 3 to 6 min at 67°C and 30 cycles of 2 s at 94°C, 3 to 6 min at 72°C, and 3 to 6 min at 72°C. The nested PCRs were carried out with primers that were designed to confirm the primary PCR products. The primers for the nested PCR were NHRAP1 (5'-GAAGTTGTCAGCAGAGCCTGAACGTGAC-3') and NHRAP2 (5'-GTCACGTTCAGGCTCTGCTGACAACTTC-3'). The conditions used were five cycles of 2 s at 94°C and 3 to 6 min at 67°C and 22 cycles of 2 s at 94°C, 3 to 6 min at 72°C, and 3 to 6 min at 72°C. The PCR products were cloned into a TOPO4 vector (Invitrogen), transformed into DH5
cells, and sequenced at the DNA Sequencing core (University of Michigan). Blast searches (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/BLAST) on the sequences revealed identities based on their homology to known genes and translated gene products.
Fluorescein labeling of genomic DNA and sPCR fragments. Restriction enzyme-digested genomic DNA or sPCR fragments were labeled with a fluorophore (ECF labeling kit, Amersham Pharmaceuticals) following manufacturer's instructions. Labeled probes were stored at -20°C.
E. coli collections. We screened hra against a total of 486 UTI, 165 rectal, 79 periurethral, and 155 vaginal isolates from various collections (reviewed in reference 13). First-UTI isolates included E. coli isolates collected from the student health services of the University of Michigan and University of Texas at Austin from women 18 to 39 years old. The UTI 40-65 group consisted of E. coli isolates from women in the age group 40 to 65 years with a UTI in western Michigan and Israel. Recurring UTI isolates are E. coli isolates from women at the University of Michigan student health services who presented with three or more UTI within the previous 12 months. Pyelonephritis isolates are from children 18 to 24 months old from five hospitals in Finland. Vaginal isolates were collected from women 18 to 39 years old with and without UTI, and rectal and periurethral isolates were from women 18 to 39 years old without UTI. All isolates were previously screened for the presence or absence of adhesins, P-pili (papGAD, papGJ96, and prsGJ96), S-fimbrial adhesin (sfa), aerobactin (aer), group II capsule (kpsMT), cytotoxic necrotizing factor (cnf), Dr family of adhesins (drb), hemolysin (hly), outer membrane protease T (ompT), Irg homolog adhesin (iha), uropathogenic specific protein (usp), and catechole siderophore receptor gene (iroNEcoli) as described previously (2, 13).
A subset of strains from the above E. coli collection was used to study the distribution of hra among the UTI- and non-UTI-causing E. coli. This subset was prepared by selecting a minimum of 88 strains randomly from each different collection of UTI- and non-UTI-causing E. coli isolates from the various epidemiologic studies. Due to the smaller size of the recurring-UTI and periurethral strains collections, only 61 and 79 strains, respectively, were included for screening from these two collections. The total subset contains 885 strains.
Nylon membrane hybridizations. The presence of hra in E. coli strains was determined using dot blot hybridization with fluorescence-labeled probes as described previously (18). Briefly, bacterial DNA was prepared by growing strains overnight in Luria-Bertani medium in a 96-well deep-well plate (volume per well, 1-ml; Corning Inc.). Bacterial cells were pelleted by centrifuging at 3,000 rpm in a Beckman desktop centrifuge and lysed with 800 µl of 0.4 N NaOH-10 mM EDTA at 70°C for 30 min. The bacterial lysate was arrayed on nylon membrane (Hybond H+; Amersham Pharmacia) using a BIO-dot Microfiltration apparatus (Bio-Rad Laboratories). Nylon membranes were washed with 2x SSC (1x SSC is 0.15 M NaCl plus 0.015 M sodium citrate), dried, and fixed by UV light.
Hybridization of probes to membranes. Fluorescently labeled sPCR fragments were hybridized to Nylon membranes and detected using the fluorescein-based detection kit (Amersham) as described previously (18). Hybridization intensities were detected using a Storm 860 PhosphorImager (Molecular Dynamics) and analyzed using ImageQuant software, version 5.0. The signal intensity of each spot was normalized to the intensity of 1128-11 (positive control). All strains were tested for the presence or absence of hra with a minimum of two independent membranes. Ambiguous results were retested on duplicate membranes and confirmed by Southern hybridization using previously described protocols (18). Sequencing of sPCR fragment DNA was performed at the University of Michigan Molecular Biology Core Facility using an Applied Biosystems model 373A automated sequencer.
Data analysis. The magnitude of the association between hra and known virulence factors was estimated using the odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals, and the significance was tested using the chi-square test. All analyses were done using SAS (version 8.0). Excel (Microsoft) software was used for data entry. Software packages from DNAStar (Madison, Wis.) were used for primer design, DNA sequence comparison, and analysis.
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GenBank searches were conducted on the remaining tester-specific sPCR fragments, one of which had no homology to currently sequenced genes. Four of the remaining 18 fragments had open reading frames (ORFs), which showed similarity to cryptic phage-related proteins found on the E. coli O157:H7 strain (Table 1). We also identified sPCR fragments containing ORFs with homology to several proteins from the E. coli O157:H7 strain and the E. coli neonatal meningitis strain. Among these the initial distribution of S2T2-31 (homologous to putative cryptic prophage integrase CP933U from E. coli O157:H7) looked interesting; however, an accurate estimate of its distribution proved to be difficult, possibly due to its shared homology with other prophage integrase genes.
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TABLE 1. Initial screen of sPCR fragments with first-UTI (n = 88), pyelonephritis (n = 88), and rectal (n = 88) E. coli strains
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Distribution of hra in UTI and non-UTI isolates. To confirm and extend the observations of hra gene distributions, we hybridized the hra probe to an additional 621 E. coli strains (total of 885). The results of this probing are shown in Table 2. hra occurred in 43%-66% of the UTI causing E. coli isolates from different collections but in only 28% of rectal strains. Overall, hra was found in 55% of 486 UTI strains compared to 28% of 165 rectal strains (P = 0.001). The relative prevalence ranged from 1.5 to 2.1 depending upon the collection (Table 2). hra also occurred 1.4 times more frequently in vaginal and periurethral strains than in rectal strains. The prevalence of hra in UTI strains was not significantly different from those of periurethral and vaginal strains. The prevalence of hra among vaginal and periurethral strains though higher than among rectal strains is not significant. Periurethral and vaginal strains are known to consist of a mix of UTI and non-UTI strains and this may explain the observed overlapping confidence intervals (Table 2).
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TABLE 2. Distribution of hra by E. coli collection, and prevalence ratio and confidence intervals for the prevalence of hra in UTI collections compared to that in rectal isolates
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TABLE 3. Associations of hra with nine known virulence genes in 885 uropathogenic and commensal E. coli isolatesa
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TABLE 4. Association of hra among 496 UPEC and 165 rectal isolates in the presence or absence of hly
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FIG. 1. Alignment of the hra-flanking regions in 1128-11. Solid arrows indicate regions with >90% DNA sequence homology to known gene sequences. The amino-terminal region of evgS ( 200 bp) is not present in the cloned region near hra in 1128-11. A partial segment of IS elements hp1 and hp2 found in CFT073 flank hra. yjgY and yjgX are hypothetical genes present in strain K-12. The cloned region contains a 200-bp internal region of the yjgX gene. The dashed arrow indicates a region of low homology (<30% at the translated-nucleotide level) between the 1128-11 sequence and published sequences.
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The hra gene in 1128-11 was cloned, sequenced, and found to have 91% homology to the hra gene from E. coli meningitis strain RS218 (http://www.genome.wisc.edu) and C5 (3). hra also shows significant homology to the 756-bp tia loci in the enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) strain H10407 (7) and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (5). The hra gene in ETEC consists of a 792-bp ORF coding for a putative protein of 29 kDa with a predicted N-terminal secretory signal sequence. An hra-like gene fragment has also been found on PAI V of E. coli J96 (16) at 94 min on the K-12 map at tRNA leuX.
Colonization of host tissues is usually mediated by adhesins, which recognize and bind to specific receptor moieties of host cells (15). While the functional role of hra in UTI is not known, hra in an ETEC O9:H10:K99 strain was determined to be a mannose-resistant hemagglutinating protein (12). The ETEC Hra functions as an outer membrane protein that acts as a nonfimbrial adhesin and promotes agglutination of human and animal erythrocytes and human colonic cells (8). The E. coli strain C1212 isolated from UTI was found to adhere to urinary epithelial cells in a mannose resistant manner (14).
The region of 1128-11 genome containing hra appears to be relatively plastic. In addition to hra, it contains part of the IS600-related sequences hp1 (found in CFT073) and hp2 (found on CFT073 and homologous to b4285 on K-12) and a region of transposase for IS600 sequence (Fig. 1). A gene encoding a putative membrane protein of unknown function, yjgY, present at 96.9 min on the K-12 map, is present adjacent to hra in 1128-11. Insertion sequences are known to be responsible for the integration of foreign DNA into E. coli genomes. The presence of an IS600 element and transposase suggests that hra could have integrated into the E. coli genome of uropathogenic 1128-11 as part of a mobile genetic element.
hra was positively associated with genes fim, pff, capII, hly, cnf, papGAD, usp, iroNEcoli, and prsGJ96. This association could arise either from genetic or functional linkage. hra can be present in UTI strains with hly/cnf/prsgj96, e.g., on the same PAI, PAI V, as in the uropathogenic strain J96 (16). We think functional linkage with PAI V factors is unlikely, since in our collection of 486 UTI strains, hra occurred with equal frequency with hly and without hly (137 strains or 28% had both hra and hly and 135 strains [27%] had hra without hly). Further, hra in strain 1128-11 does not appear to be in a region similar to PAI V.
The N-terminal sequence of evgS is not found in the region flanking hra in 1128-11, although it is present in the 1128-11 genome (results not shown), suggesting that at the very least the insertion of hra has resulted in the disruption of this gene. It is interesting to speculate that hra in 1128-11 is on a novel PAI. The determination of the genetic location of the N-terminal end of evgS and adjacent genes will help determine the exact nature (PAI- versus IS-related) of the hra insertion in 1128-11. Further studies to determine the distribution of genomic positions of hra in UTI strains will also help in our understanding of the different modes of acquisition and transfer of hra among UTI-causing E. coli.
In summary, hra is present in more than half the UTI-causing E. coli strains and only about a quarter of rectal strains. This implies that hra may be important in UTI virulence. Functional studies will be needed to further establish the definitive role of Hra and relative importance of mannose resistant adhesin like Hra among the already known adhesins in their contribution to UTI pathogenesis.
This work was supported by an award from the National Institutes of Health (grant RO1 DK55496 to C.F.M.).
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