Open AccessNeuraminidase (sialidase) activity of Haemophilus parasuis
Author(s) -
Lichtensteiger Carol A,
Vimr Eric R
Publication year - 1997
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.1574-6968.1997.tb10438.x
Subject(s) - neuraminidase , sialidase , microbiology and biotechnology , haemophilus , sialic acid , biology , actinobacillus , pasteurellaceae , pasteurella multocida , pathogen , bacteria , neuraminic acid , biochemistry , haemophilus influenzae , enzyme , antibiotics , genetics
Neuraminidase (sialidase), a potential virulence factor in bacteria, was demonstrated in Haemophilus parasuis , an invasive swine pathogen, but not in four other pathogens of the Pasteurellaceae family: H. influenzae , H. somnus , H. paragallinarum , or Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae . H. parasuis neuraminidase had an acidic pH optimum and a specificity for several substrates also cleaved by other bacterial neuraminidases. Similar to the neuraminidase of Pasteurella multocida , H. parasuis neuraminidase was cell associated and did not require divalent cations for activity. Exogenous sialic acid added to growth medium of H. parasuis was cleared after a lag of about 10 h and these cultures grew to a greater final density than cultures without added sialic acid, indicating that exogenous sialic acid is metabolized. The role of sialidase in providing nutrients to H. parasuis may be an important factor in its obligate parasitism.