Epitope mapping of hemagglutinating adhesin HA-Ag2 of Bacteroides (Porphyromonas) gingivalis

Abstract

Thirteen monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) directed against hemagglutinating adhesin HA-Ag2 of Bacteroides (Porphyromonas) gingivalis were produced by immunizing mice with the relevant immunoprecipitate from crossed immunoelectrophoresis (CIE). Crossed immuno-affinoelectrophoresis and hemagglutination experiments confirmed that our MAbs recognized a molecule able to bind erythrocytes and involved in the hemagglutination process. In immunoelectron microscopy, these MAbs labelled amorphous material as novel cell-bound appendages distinct from fimbriae. CIE experiments allowed differentiation of the MAbs according to reactivity with immunoprecipitates Ag2, Ag8a, and Ag8c, which define HA-Ag2. The epitopes recognized by nine MAbs were mapped on three main antigenic domains (I, II, and III) by competition experiments and further grouped according to chemical composition and distribution on CIE immunoprecipitates. Domain I, defined by two MAbs, comprises an epitope with protein and carbohydrate determinants and distributed on Ag2 only. Epitopes of domain IIA, defined by four MAbs, are distributed on Ag8a, Ag8c, and Ag2 and are essentially composed of protein determinants but also have carbohydrate determinants that enhance the binding of the MAbs but are not essential. Epitopes of domain IIB, defined by two MAbs, and of domain III, defined by a single MAb, have a composition similar to that of domain IIA epitopes but are distributed on Ag8a and Ag8c only. A competition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with serum from normal subjects and patients with periodontitis suggested that domain I is more immunogenic than domain II.