A competitive mechanism for staphylococcal toxin SSL7 inhibiting the leukocyte IgA receptor, FcαRI, is revealed by SSL7 binding at the Cα2/Cα3 interface of IgA

Abstract

Leukocyte recruitment and effector functions like phagocytosis and respiratory burst are key elements of immunity to infection. Pathogen survival is dependent upon the ability to overwhelm, evade or inhibit the immune system. Pathogenic group A and group B streptococci are well known to produce virulence factors that block the binding of IgA to the leukocyte IgA receptor, FcαRI, thereby inhibiting IgA-mediated immunity. Recently we found Staphylococcus aureus also interferes with IgA-mediated effector functions as the putative virulence factor SSL7 also binds IgA and blocks binding to FcαRI. Herein we report that SSL7 and FcαRI bind many of the same key residues in the Fc region of human IgA. Residues Leu-257 and Leu-258 in domain Cα2 and residues 440-443 PLAF in Cα3 of IgA lie at the Cα2/Cα3 interface and make major contributions to the binding of both the leukocyte receptor FcαRI and SSL7. It is remarkable this S. aureus IgA binding factor and unrelated factors from streptococci are functionally convergent, all targeting a number of the same residues in the IgA Fc, which comprise the binding site for the leukocyte IgA receptor, FcαRI. © 2006 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.