The Adh adhesin domain is required for trimeric autotransporter Apa1-mediated Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae adhesion, autoaggregation, biofilm formation and pathogenicity

- The head region of Apa1 contains the optimal adhesion functional domain (named Adh).
- The Adh protein was responsible for partial protection against homologous A. pleuropneumoniae challenge.
- Deleting the Adh gene decreased autoaggregation, biofilm formation and host cell adherence.
- Deleting the Adh gene decreased pathogenicity of the A. pleuropneumoniae L20 strain in piglets.
- Adh may enhance pathogenicity by depressing host immune recognition genes.

Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae is a causative agent of porcine pleuropneumonia, which is a highly contagious endemic disease of pigs. Adhesion is a critical first step in the infection process. Trimeric autotransporter adhesions (TAAs) have been identified as novel virulence factors; however, little is known on their roles in A. pleuropneumoniae pathogenicity. Here, our data show that YadA-like head region (Adh) of Apa1 was the optimal adhesion functional domain via segment expression and adhesion assays in vitro. Additionally, Adh induced partial protection against A. pleuropneumoniae 5b L20 and serotypes 1, 3, and 5a in mice. The deletion of Adh gene significantly decreased autoaggregation, biofilm formation and adherence to host cells in vitro. Furthermore, with delaying of clinical symptoms, reducing production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and lessening the lung injury after infection, Adh deletion strain (5bϕAdh) significantly reduced the pathogenicity to piglets. To elucidate the mechanism of lung injury, the differentially expressed genes in the lung tissues of piglets infected with the 5b L20 or 5bϕAdh strains were investigated using microarray analysis and validated by qRT-PCR. Compared with the 5b L20 infected piglets, 495 genes were differentially expressed in 5bϕAdh infected lung tissue (221 upregulated and 274 downregulated). Especially, the antigen processing and presentation gene IFI30 was increased following infection with the 5bϕAdh strain. Thus, Adh may enhance pathogenicity by depressing host immune recognition. We conclude that the head domain of the A. pleuropneumoniae trimeric autotransporter Apa1 regulates autoagglutination, biofilm formation, adhesion to host cells and pathogenicity.