Sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of neurotoxin gene from an environmental isolate of Clostridium sp.: comparison with other clostridial neurotoxins

Abstract

A Clostridium sp. isolated from intestine of decaying fish exhibited 99% sequence identity with C. tetani at 16S rRNA level. It produced a neurotoxin that was neutralized by botulinum antitoxin (A+B+E) as well as tetanus antitoxin. The gene fragments for light chain, C-terminal and N-terminal regions of the heavy chain of the toxin were amplified using three reported primer sets for tetanus neurotoxin (TeNT). The neurotoxin gene fragments were cloned in Escherichia coli and sequenced. The sequences obtained exhibited approximately 98, 99 and 98% sequence identity with reported gene sequences of TeNT/LC, TeNT/HC and TeNT/HN, respectively. The phylogenetic interrelationship between the neurotoxin gene of Clostridium sp. with previously reported gene sequences of Clostridium botulinum A to G and C. tetani was examined by analysis of differences in the nucleotide sequences. Six amino acids were substituted at four different positions in the light chain of neurotoxin from the isolate when compared with the reported closest sequence of TeNT. Of these, four were located in the β15 motif at a solvent inaccessible, buried region of the protein molecule. One of these substitutions were on the solvent accessible surface residue of α1 motif, previously shown to have strong sequence conservation. A substitution of two amino acids observed in N-terminal region of heavy chain were buried residues, located in the β21 and β37 motifs showing variability in other related sequences. The C-terminal region responsible for binding to receptor was conserved, showing no changes in the amino acid sequence.