We recently developed a molecular typing system for Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli based on restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of the flagellin gene,flaA (I.Nachamkin, K. Bohachick, and C.M. Patton, J. Clin. Microbiol. 31:1531-1536, 1993). We extended the typing system to 83 flagellin types (designated flaA-1,flaA-2, etc.) on the basis of analysis of 404 isolates of ...

The highly variable flagellin-encoding flaA gene has long been used for genotyping Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli. High-resolution melting (HRM) analysis is emerging as an efficient and robust method for discriminating DNA sequence variants. The objective of this study was to apply HRM analysis to flaA-based genotyping. The initial aim was to identify a suitable flaA fragment. It w...

We aimed to explore Campylobacter genotype-specific risk factors in Australia. Isolates collected prospectively from cases recruited into a case-control study were genotyped using flaA restriction fragment-length polymorphism typing (flaA genotyping). Exposure information for cases and controls was collected by telephone interview. Risk factors were examined for major flaA genotypes using logis...

FlaA was recently found to be associated with flagellar filaments of Borrelia burgdorferi. We tested whether antibodies to this protein are a good indicator of infection, as antibodies to FlaA proteins in other spirochetal infections show an increase in titer. Although overproduction of intact FlaA was highly toxic to Escherichia coli, truncated proteins which lacked the N-terminal signal seque...

The spirochete which causes Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi, has many features common to other spirochete species. Outermost is a membrane sheath, and within this sheath are the cell cylinder and periplasmic flagella (PFs). The PFs are subterminally attached to the cell cylinder and overlap in the center of the cell. Most descriptions of the B. burgdorferi flagellar filaments indicate that t...

Campylobacter is genetically highly diverse and undergoes frequent intraspecific recombination. Turkeys have been identified as an important reservoir for Campylobacter jejuni which is of public health significance. The assessment of the genetic diversity among Campylobacter population is critical for our understanding of the epidemiology of this bacterium. The genetic profiles were different a...

Spirochete periplasmic flagella (PFs), including those from Brachyspira (Serpulina), Spirochaeta, Treponema, and Leptospira spp., have a unique structure. In most spirochete species, the periplasmic flagellar filaments consist of a core of at least three proteins (FlaB1, FlaB2, and FlaB3) and a sheath protein (FlaA). Each of these proteins is encoded by a separate gene. Using Brachyspira hyodys...

A recombinant protein comprising the maltose-binding protein (MBP) of Escherichia coli fused to amino acids 5 to 337 of the FlaA flagellin of Campylobacter coli VC167 was evaluated for immunogenicity and protective efficacy against challenge by a heterologous strain of campylobacter, Campylobacter jejuni 81-176, in two murine models. The sequence of the flaA gene of strain 81-176 revealed a pre...

The recombinant protein flagellin A (FlaA) N/C, derived from the flagellin protein of Legionella pneumophila, has been shown to increase the expression of cytoprotective cytokines, activate the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling pathway, and increase the survival of mice following total body irradiation. Determi ning whether FlaA N/C has a sensitizing effect on tumor radiation or a direct tumo...