A ROLE IN CELL-BINDING FOR THE C-TERMINUS OF PNEUMOLYSIN, THE THIOL-ACTIVATED TOXIN OF STREPTOCCOCCUS-PNEUMONIAE

Cell binding of pneumolysin to target cells is an important step in th e lysis of cells by this toxin. We sought to locate the cell-binding r egion of pneumolysin. Deletion of the six C-terminal amino acids decre ased cell-binding activity by 98%. Furthermore, mutagenesis of an amin o acid near the C-terminus decreased the cell-binding activity of full -length pneumolysin by 90%. The C-terminus of pneumolysin has an impor tant role in cell-binding activity.