01545nas a2200265   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653002300055653002200078653001100100653001900111653001200130653001700142653002100159653001400180653002500194100001200219700001500231700001300246245005300259300001000312490000700322520093600329022001401265       2004                            d  c2004 Feb10aBacterial Proteins10aGenome, Bacterial10aHumans10aInterleukin-1210aleprosy10aLipoproteins10aMolecular Weight10aMonocytes10aMycobacterium leprae1 aMaeda Y1 aBrennan PJ1 aMakino M00aStudies of lipoproteins of Mycobacterium leprae.  a15-210 v733 a<p>The deciphering of the genomic sequence of Mycobacterium leprae has made possible to predict the possible lipoproteins. The consensus sequence at the N-terminal region of the protein, including the cysteine residue to which the lipid moiety gets attached, provides a clue to the search. As such, more than 20 putative lipoproteins have been identified from Mycobacterium leprae genomic sequence. Lipoprotein LpK (Accession no. ML0603) which encodes for 371 amino acid precursor protein, was identified. Expression of the protein, in Escherichia coli revealed a 33 kD protein, and metabolic labeling experiments proved that the protein was lipidated. The purified lipoprotein was found to induce production of IL-12 in human peripheral blood monocytes which may imply that M. leprae LpK is involved in protective immunity against leprosy. Pursuit of such lipoproteins may reveal insights into the pathogenesis of the disease.</p>  a1342-3681