Open AccessHuman serum antibody response against iron‐repressible outer membrane proteins of Helicobacter pylori
Author(s) -
Worst Dennis J.,
Sparrius Marion,
Kuipers Ernst J.,
Kusters Johannes G.,
Graaff Johannes
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.1996.tb08504.x
Subject(s) - bacterial outer membrane , in vivo , helicobacter pylori , antibody , microbiology and biotechnology , immune system , biology , in vitro , virulence , iron binding proteins , humoral immunity , membrane protein , immunology , escherichia coli , biochemistry , membrane , transferrin , gene , genetics
In Helicobacter pylori , in vitro iron limitation induces the expression of several iron repressible outer membrane proteins (IROMPs), which are not expressed under normal growth conditions. To substantiate their proposed role in virulence of H. pylori , we determined whether these IROMPs are also expressed in vivo. Therefore, we tested whether sera of patients with H. pylori infection contained antibodies against IROMPs. All sera from 20 H. pylori positive patients showed a clear immune response against a 77 kDa heme‐binding IROMP in an immunoblot assay. Antibody responses against the other IROMPs were also found, but with lower frequencies. Serum samples from 18 patients negative for H. pylori infection did not show any immunoreactivity with IROMPs. These results indicate that the IROMPs of H. pylori are immunogenic and are expressed in vivo.