02305nas a2200397   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653002400055653001200079653002700091653002400118653001800142653002300160653001300183653001600196653003000212653002800242653002100270653002500291653001200316653002500328653002400353653001500377100001400392700001500406700001900421700001200440700001600452700001300468700001900481245014100500300000900641490000700650520123600657022001401893       1990                            d  c1990 Jan10aAmino Acid Sequence10aAnimals10aAntibodies, Monoclonal10aAntigens, Bacterial10aBase Sequence10aCloning, Molecular10aEpitopes10aGuinea Pigs10aHypersensitivity, Delayed10aMolecular Sequence Data10aMolecular Weight10aMycobacterium leprae10aProline10aRecombinant Proteins10aRestriction Mapping10aSkin Tests1 aThole J E1 aStabel L F1 aSuykerbuyk M E1 aWit M Y1 aKlatser P R1 aKolk A H1 aHartskeerl R A00aA major immunogenic 36,000-molecular-weight antigen from Mycobacterium leprae contains an immunoreactive region of proline-rich repeats.  a80-70 v583 a<p>The 36,000-molecular-weight antigen (36K antigen) of Mycobacterium leprae is a major immunogenic protein carrying common and specific antigenic determinants recognized by antibodies and T cells in leprosy patients. Recombinant DNA clones containing the complete gene coding for the 36 K antigen, designated in this paper as PRA, were isolated from both lambda gt11 and cosmid libraries of the M. leprae genome. The DNA sequence of the pra gene coded for a polypeptide of 249 amino acids with a predicted molecular mass of 26,299 daltons. The deduced amino acid sequence revealed a proline-rich (42%) amino-terminal region containing a number of repeated sequences similar or identical to the sequence PGGSYPPPPP. The reactivity of four monoclonal antibodies (F47-9, F67-1, F67-5, and F126-5) was directed to this proline-rich region of the PRA protein. DNA sequence and immunological data indicated that the lambda gt11 recombinant Y3180, which was previously isolated by using antibody F47-9 (R. A. Young, V. Mehra, D. Sweetser, T. Buchanan, J. Clark-Curtiss, R. W. Davis, and B. R. Bloom, Nature (London) 316:450-452, 1985), specifies a fusion protein unrelated to PRA but containing a similar epitope recognized by F47-9.</p>  a0019-9567