Institute for Biological Sciences, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0R6, Canada
The enteropathogen Campylobacter jejuni has the ability to synthesize glycan structures that are similar to mammalian gangliosides within the core component of its lipooligosaccharide (LOS). Exposure to ganglioside mimics in some individuals results in the production of autoantibodies that deleteriously attack nerve surface gangliosides, precipitating the onset of Guillain-Barre and Fisher syndromes (GBS and FS). We have characterized the interaction of four monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), established by sensitization of mice with LOS isolated from GBS- and FS-associated C. jejuni strains, with chemoenzymatically synthesized gangliooligosaccharides. Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) measurements demonstrate that three of the mAbs interact specifically with derivatives corresponding to their targeted gangliosides, with dissociation constants ranging from 10 to 20 microM. Antibody binding to the gangliooligosaccharides was probed by saturation transfer difference (STD) NMR spectroscopy. STD signals, resulting from antibody/oligosaccharide interaction, were observed for each of the four mAbs. In two cases, differential saturation transfer rates to oligosaccharide resonances enabled detailed epitope mapping. The binding of GD1a-S-Phe with GB1 is characterized by close association of the immunoglobulin with sites that are distributed over several residues of the oligosaccharide. This contrasts sharply with the profile observed for the binding of both GD3-S-Phe and GT1a-S-Phe with FS1. The close antigenic contacts in these ganglioside derivatives are confined to the N-acetylmannosaminyl portion of the terminal N-acetylneuraminic acid (NeuAc) residue of the disialosyl moiety. Our characterization of FS1 provides insight, at an atomic level, into how a single antigenic determinant presented by the LOS of C. jejuni can give rise to antibodies with binding promiscuity to [αNeuAc-(2-8)-αNeuAc]-bound epitopes and demonstrates why sera from FS patients have antibodies that are often reactive with more than one disialylated ganglioside
13C NMR, 1H NMR, NMR-2D, serological methods, biochemical methods, STD NMR, surface plasmon resonance (SPR)
13C NMR data:
Linkage Residue C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9
4,3,5 Ac ? 22.9
4,3 aXNeup ? ? 38.3 69.5 52.4 73.8 69.0 73.1 63.7
4,4,3,3,8,5 Ac ? 22.9
4,4,3,3,8 aXNeup ? ? 41.4 69.4 52.6 73.4 69.0 72.7 63.5
4,4,3,3,5 Ac ? 23.2
4,4,3,3 aXNeup ? ? 40.5 69.0 53.1 75.0 70.3 79.3 62.5
4,4,3 bDGalp 105.3 70.0 76.1 68.3 75.3 61.9
4,4,2 Ac ? 23.5
4,4 bDGalpN 103.4 51.9 81.0 68.6 75.1 62.0
4 bDGalp 103.3 70.8 75.2 77.3 74.9 61.5
bDGlcp1S 87.9 72.2 76.6 79.5 79.0 61.0
1H NMR data:
Linkage Residue H1 H2 H3 H4 H5 H6 H7 H8 H9
4,3,5 Ac - 2.04
4,3 aXNeup - - 1.90-2.70 3.76 3.82 3.51 3.58 3.76 3.62-3.87
4,4,3,3,8,5 Ac - 2.04
4,4,3,3,8 aXNeup - - 1.74-2.77 3.67 3.83 3.61 3.59 3.92 3.65-3.89
4,4,3,3,5 Ac - 2.07
4,4,3,3 aXNeup - - 1.75-2.66 3.60 3.80 3.63 3.85 4.16 3.71-4.17
4,4,3 bDGalp 4.61 3.54 4.08 3.97 3.68 3.72
4,4,2 Ac - 2.03
4,4 bDGalpN 4.75 4.02 3.85 4.16 3.70 3.76
4 bDGalp 4.52 3.38 4.13 4.10 3.74 3.76-3.80
bDGlcp1S 4.84 3.40 3.69 3.63 3.63 3.80-3.97
1H/13C HSQC data:
Linkage Residue C1/H1 C2/H2 C3/H3 C4/H4 C5/H5 C6/H6 C7/H7 C8/H8 C9/H9
4,3,5 Ac 22.9/2.04
4,3 aXNeup 38.3/1.90-2.70 69.5/3.76 52.4/3.82 73.8/3.51 69.0/3.58 73.1/3.76 63.7/3.62-3.87
4,4,3,3,8,5 Ac 22.9/2.04
4,4,3,3,8 aXNeup 41.4/1.74-2.77 69.4/3.67 52.6/3.83 73.4/3.61 69.0/3.59 72.7/3.92 63.5/3.65-3.89
4,4,3,3,5 Ac 23.2/2.07
4,4,3,3 aXNeup 40.5/1.75-2.66 69.0/3.60 53.1/3.80 75.0/3.63 70.3/3.85 79.3/4.16 62.5/3.71-4.17
4,4,3 bDGalp 105.3/4.61 70.0/3.54 76.1/4.08 68.3/3.97 75.3/3.68 61.9/3.72
4,4,2 Ac 23.5/2.03
4,4 bDGalpN 103.4/4.75 51.9/4.02 81.0/3.85 68.6/4.16 75.1/3.70 62.0/3.76
4 bDGalp 103.3/4.52 70.8/3.38 75.2/4.13 77.3/4.10 74.9/3.74 61.5/3.76-3.80
bDGlcp1S 87.9/4.84 72.2/3.40 76.6/3.69 79.5/3.63 79.0/3.63 61.0/3.80-3.97