The University of British Columbia

Universidad Nacional AutÓnoma De MÉxico

Brett Finlay

Brendan Kenny

Markus Stein

Rebekah DeVinney

Wanyin Deng

Jose L Puente

Samantha Gruenheid

Bruce A Vallance

The invention relates to, in part, secreted proteins of bacterial pathogens and methods for their use. More specifically, the invention provides in part several new common secreted proteins for A/E pathogens. In some embodiments of the invention, these polypeptides and nucleic acid molecules encoding these polypeptides, or portions thereof, are useful as vaccines, diagnostics, or drug screening tools for A/E pathogenic infections, or as reagents.

Bacterial virulence factors and uses thereof

A polypeptide, called Tir (for translocated intimin receptor, which is secreted by attaching and effacing pathogens, such as the enteropathogenic (EPEC) and enterohemorrhagic (EHEC). These bacterial pathogens inserts their own receptors into mammalian cell surfaces, to which the bacterial pathogen then adheres to trigger additional host signaling events and actin nucleation. Diagnosis of disease caused by pathogeniccan be performed by the use of antibodies which bind to Tir to detect the protein or the use of nucleic acid probes for detection of nucleic acids encoding Tir polypeptide. Isolated nucleic acid sequences encoding Tir polypeptide, Tir peptides, a recombinant method for producing recombinant Tir, antibodies which bind to Tir, and a kit for the detection of Tir-producingare provided. A method of immunizing a host with Tir to induce a protective immune response to Tir or a second polypeptide of interst is also provided. A method for screening for compounds which interfere with the binding of bacterial pathogens to their receptors is further provided.

Host receptor for pathogenic bacteria

A polypeptide, called Tir (for translocated intimin receptor, which is secreted by attaching and effacing pathogens, such as the enteropathogenic (EPEC) and enterohemorrhagic (EHEC). These bacterial pathogens inserts their own receptors into mammalian cell surfaces, to which the bacterial pathogen then adheres to trigger additional host signaling events and actin nucleation. Diagnosis of disease caused by pathogeniccan be performed by the use of antibodies which bind to Tir to detect the protein or the use of nucleic acid probes for detection of nucleic acids encoding Tir polypeptide. Isolated nucleic acid sequences encoding Tir polypeptide, Tir peptides, a recombinant method for producing recombinant Tir, antibodies which bind to Tir, and a kit for the detection of Tir-producingare provided. A method of immunizing a host with Tir to induce a protective immune response to Tir or a second polypeptide of interest is also provided. A method for screening for compounds which interfere with the binding of bacterial pathogens to their receptors is further provided.

Method for detecting a host receptor for pathogenic bacteria

Growing community of inventors

Richmond, CA, United States of America

Brett Finlay