Determination of antigenic glycoproteins of Enterococcus faecalis strains distinguished with aggregation substance, gelatinase and cytolysine

Abstract

In this study, we aimed to analyze the protein profiles and the specific antigenic glycoproteins of Enterococcus faecalis strains distinguished with the aggregation substance (AS), gelatinase and cytolysine. To determine the whole cell protein profiles of E. faecalis, the sodium dodecylsulfate polyacrylamide gel analysis (SDS-PAGE) was performed. All the E. faecalis strains showed protein bands between 29-165 kDa. For the antigenic characterization, the immunblot analysis was performed. All of the three strains of E. faecalis showed common antigenic protein bands which were 165, 35 and 32 kDa. Presence of glycoproteins was determined using lectin affinity chromatography and SDS-PAGE. The antigenic glycoprotein bands of E. faecalis were determined as 85, 55, 32 and 29 kDa for the cytolysine positive strain; 83, 45 and 32 kDa for the strain gelatinase positive strain and 111, 83, 55, 45 kDa for the AS positive strain. In conclusion; there was no difference found for the general protein profiles among the strains of Enterococcus faecalis with virulence factors of AS, gelatinase and cytolysine. However, the antigenic glycoprotein profiles of these E. faecalis were found to be different among these strains. These findings could be used for choosing the appropriate master seed on the development of enterococcal vaccine.