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Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, October 2008, p. 1555-1563, Vol. 15, No. 10
1071-412X/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/CVI.00177-08
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Distribution of Pneumococcal Surface Protein A Families 1 and 2 among Streptococcus pneumoniae Isolates from Children in Finland Who Had Acute Otitis Media or Were Nasopharyngeal Carriers{triangledown}

Merit M. Melin,1* Susan K. Hollingshead,2 David E. Briles,2 William P. Hanage,3 Mika Lahdenkari,1 Tarja Kaijalainen,4 Terhi M. Kilpi,1 and Helena M. Käyhty1

National Public Health Institute, Helsinki, Finland,1 University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama,2 Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom,3 National Public Health Institute, Oulu, Finland4

Received 13 May 2008/ Returned for modification 13 June 2008/ Accepted 15 August 2008

PspA is a structurally variable surface protein important to the virulence of pneumococci. PspAs are serologically cross-reactive and exist as two major families. In this study, we determined the distribution of PspA families 1 and 2 among pneumococcal strains isolated from the middle ear fluid (MEF) of children with acute otitis media and from nasopharyngeal specimens of children with pneumococcal carriage. We characterized the association between the two PspA families, capsular serotypes, and multilocus sequence types (STs) of the pneumococcal isolates. MEF isolates (n = 201) of 109 patients and nasopharyngeal isolates (n = 173) of 49 children were PspA family typed by whole-cell enzyme immunoassay (EIA). Genetic typing (PCR) of PspA family was done for 60 isolates to confirm EIA typing results. The prevalences of PspA families 1 and 2 were similar among pneumococci isolated from MEF (51% and 45%, respectively) and nasopharyngeal specimens (48% each). Isolates of certain capsule types as well as isolates of certain STs showed statistical associations with either family 1 or family 2 PspA. Pneumococci from seven children with multiple pneumococcal isolates appeared to express serologically different PspA families in different isolates of the same serotype; in three of the children the STs of the isolates were the same, suggesting that antigenic changes in the PspA expressed may have taken place. The majority of the isolates (97%) belonged to either PspA family 1 or family 2, suggesting that a combination including the two main PspA families would make a good vaccine candidate.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: National Public Health Institute (KTL), Department of Vaccines, Mannerheimintie 166, 00300 Helsinki, Finland. Phone: 358-9-4744 8903. Fax: 358-9-4744 8599. E-mail: merit.melin{at}ktl.fi

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 27 August 2008.

Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, October 2008, p. 1555-1563, Vol. 15, No. 10
1071-412X/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/CVI.00177-08
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Melin, M., Jarva, H., Siira, L., Meri, S., Kayhty, H., Vakevainen, M. (2009). Streptococcus pneumoniae Capsular Serotype 19F Is More Resistant to C3 Deposition and Less Sensitive to Opsonophagocytosis than Serotype 6B. Infect. Immun. 77: 676-684 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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