Vaccination With Recombinant Filamentous Phages Against Parasite Infection Requires TLR9 Expression.

Recombinant filamentous bacteriophages (r) expressing antigenic peptides were shown to induce cell-mediated immune responses in the absence of added adjuvant, being a promising delivery system for vaccination. Here, we tested the capacity of r phages to protect against infection with the human protozoan , the etiologic agent of Chagas Disease. For this, C57BL/6 (B6) and mice were vaccinated with r phages expressing the OVA peptide or the -immunodominant peptides PA8 and TSKB20 and challenged with either the Y-OVA or Y-strain, respectively.

Structure and function of a novel GH8 endoglucanase from the bacterial cellulose synthase complex of Raoultella ornithinolytica.

Cellulose synthesis in bacteria is a complex process involving the concerted action of several enzymes whose genes are often organized in operons. This process influences many fundamental physiological aspects such as bacteria and host interaction, biofilm formation, among others. Although it might sound contradictory, the participation of cellulose-degrading enzymes is critical to this process.