Anti-alpha-hemolysin monoclonal antibodies mediate protection against Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia.

ABSTRACT: Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia is one of the most common invasive diseases caused by this human pathogen. S. aureus alpha-hemolysin, a pore-forming cytotoxin, is an essential virulence factor in the pathogenesis of pneumonia. Vaccine-based targeting of this toxin provides protection against lethal staphylococcal pneumonia in a murine model system, suggesting that a monoclonal antibody-based therapy may likewise prove to be efficacious for prevention and treatment of this disease. We report the generation of two distinct anti-alpha-hemolysin monoclonal antibodies that antagonize toxin activity, preventing human lung cell injury in vitro and protecting experimental animals against lethal S. aureus pneumonia. Each of these two monoclonal antibodies recognized an epitope within the first 50 a

SUBMITTER: Ragle BE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2708543 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature