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Increased severity of respiratory infections associated with elevated anti-LPS IgG2 which inhibits serum bactericidal killing

Lookup NU author(s): Amy Cranston, Professor Anthony De SoyzaORCiD

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).

Abstract

Although specific antibody induced by pathogens or vaccines is a key component of protection against infectious threats, some viruses, such as dengue, induce antibody that enhances the development of infection. In contrast, antibody-dependent enhancement of bacterial infection is largely unrecognized. Here, we demonstrate that in a significant portion of patients with bronchiectasis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infection, antibody can protect the bacterium from complement-mediated killing. Strains that resist antibody-induced, complement-mediated killing produce lipopolysaccharide containing O-antigen. The inhibition of antibody-mediated killing is caused by excess production of O-antigen-specific IgG2 antibodies. Depletion of IgG2 to O-antigen restores the ability of sera to kill strains with long-chain O-antigen. Patients with impaired serum-mediated killing of P. aeruginosa by IgG2 have poorer respiratory function than infected patients who do not produce inhibitory antibody. We suggest that excessive binding of IgG2 to O-antigen shields the bacterium from other antibodies that can induce complement-mediated killing of bacteria. As there is significant sharing of O-antigen structure between different Gram-negative bacteria, this IgG2-mediated impairment of killing may operate in other Gram-negative infections. These findings have marked implications for our understanding of protection generated by natural infection and for the design of vaccines, which should avoid inducing such blocking antibodies.

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Author(s): Wells TJ, Whitters D, Sevastsyanovich YR, Heath JN, Pravin J, Goodall M, Browning DF, O'Shea MK, Cranston A, De Soyza A, Cunningham AF, MacLennan CA, Henderson IR, Stockley RA

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Journal of Experimental Medicine

Year: 2014

Volume: 211

Issue: 9

Pages: 1893-1904

Print publication date: 25/08/2014

Online publication date: 11/08/2014

Acceptance date: 10/07/2014

Date deposited: 26/02/2015

ISSN (print): 0022-1007

ISSN (electronic): 1540-9538

Publisher: Rockefeller University Press

URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1084/jem.20132444

DOI: 10.1084/jem.20132444

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