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Resources » Paper

Y Kato (1999) International C. elegans Meeting "Immune defense of C.elegans: abf operon, ASABF type antimicrobial peptide genes"

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    Publication type:
    Meeting_abstract
    WormBase ID:
    WBPaper00023296

    Y Kato (1999). Immune defense of C.elegans: abf operon, ASABF type antimicrobial peptide genes presented in International C. elegans Meeting. Unpublished information; cite only with author permission.

    The immune defense system of C. elegans remains to be elucidated. To find a clue, we are searching for the immune effector molecules in C. elegans , combined with the biochemical analysis of the big nematode, Ascaris suum . At least four immune effector proteins have been identified in Ascaris body fluid: a peptide that inhibits bacterial growth (ASABF), a bacteriolytic protein (ASBLF), and two proteins that agglutinate bacteria (ASAGF-1 and 2). The antimicrobial peptide, ASABF, was purified and its complete amino acid sequence was determined. A cDNA encoding ASABF was also cloned, and further screening of a cDNA library indicated that ASABF forms a family of at least four members (ASABF-alpha, beta, gamma, and delta). ASABF is a basic peptide with four intramolecular disulfide bridges and is effective especially against Gram positive bacteria. Database searches revealed two ASABF homologs ( abf-1 and 2 ) in C. elegans . abf-1 and 2 seem to form a typical operon, and their polycistronic RNA was experimentally detected. The transcript of the downstream gene, abf-2 , was exclusively trans-spliced with SL1, although a spacer sequence with 78 bp was found between the poly A additional site of abf-1 and the SL1 acceptor site of abf-2 . The abf operon was expressed in the pharynx and pharyngeal neurons. Since live bacteria are concentrated in the pharynx due to normal feeding, we speculate that ABF might defend the pharyngeal tissue against bacterial infection from the lumen, and/or help with the digestion of ingested bacteria.


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