SURFACE MEMBRANE ANTIGENS OF AIDS ASSOCIATED MYCOPLASMAS

本续期申请的总体目标是描述和 表征柔膜支原体的特异性表面蛋白 与病原体相互作用相关的发酵素， 宿主，并了解这种小的潜在遗传特征， 原核病原体，可以提供适应性多样性， 变化量作为致命性急性呼吸道感染的致病因子 痛苦综合征，和一种不常见的普遍代理分离， 艾滋病患者M.发酵剂在其中扮演着潜在的重要角色 在人类疾病中作为主要病原体或贡献病原体。 调节几种宿主细胞功能的因子已经与 与M.发酵剂。表面膜脂蛋白显示 表面结构和表达的多种形式的变化 已被记录和一个大的（>25 kb），重复染色体 元素（REP），包含多个连续的ORF编码 表达的脂蛋白和其他假定的毒力因子已经被 最近发现的。工作重点将是描述这一点， 独特的遗传因子及其在遗传变异中的可能作用， 表面多样性脂蛋白也是有效的免疫调节剂 分子。最近，有丝分裂原的短肽序列， 从M.已确定发酵剂。是 旨在分析与此相对应的基因结构， 脂肽使用标准的分子生物学和 免疫生物化学程序，拟议项目将（一） 表征生物活性脂肽的初级基因产物， (ii)表征含有完整REP的克隆，（iii）比较 菌株中REP的染色体分布，以及（iv） 鉴定REP编码表面脂蛋白的变体。总的来说， 这些研究将为生物活性脂质提供新的认识 化合物和遗传变异，这两个潜在的关键， 适应性和致病性。

The overall objectives of this renewal application are to delineate and characterize specific surface proteins of the mollicute Mycoplasma fermentans that are associated with pathogenic interactions with the host, and to understand underlying genetic features of this small prokaryotic pathogen that may provide adaptive diversity and variation. Implicated as a causal agent of a fatal acute respiratory distress syndrome, and an uncommonly prevalent agent isolated from patients with AIDS, M. fermentans plays a potentially important role in human disease either as a primary or contributing pathogen. Factors modulating several host cell functions have been associated with M. fermentans. Surface membrane lipoproteins displaying multiple forms of variation in surface structure and expression have been documented and a large(>25 kb), repetitive chromosomal element (REP) that contains multiple contiguous ORFs encoding expressed lipoproteins and other putative virulence factors has been recently identified. Efforts will be focused on characterizing this unique genetic element and its likely role in genetic variation and surface diversity. Lipoproteins are also potent immunomodulatory molecules. Recently, a short peptide sequence of a mitogenic lipopeptide purified from M. fermentans has been determined. It is intended to analyze the gene structure corresponding to this lipopeptide. Using standard molecular biology and immunobiochemical procedures, the proposed project will (i) characterize the primary gene product of the bioactive lipopeptide, (ii) characterize clones containing complete REPs, (iii) compare the chromosomal distribution of REPs among the strains, and (iv) identify variants of a REP-encoded surface lipoprotein. Overall, these studies should provide new knowledge on bioactive lipid compounds and genetic variation, both potentially crucial for the adaptation and pathogenicity of this organism.