Nucleotide sequences of two fimbrial major subunit genes, pmpA and ucaA, from canine-uropathogenic Proteus mirabilis strains

Proteus mirabilis strains were isolated from dogs with urinary tract infection (UTI) and fimbriae were prepared from two strains. The N-terminal amino acid sequences of the major fimbrial subunits were determined and both sequences appeared identical to the N-terminal amino acid sequence of a urinary cell adhesin (UCA) (Wray, S. K., Hull, S. I., Cook, R. G., Barrish, J. & Hull, R. A., 1986, Infect Immun 54, 43-49). The genes of two different major fimbrial subunits were cloned using oligonucleotide probes that were designed on the basis of the N-terminal UCA sequence. Nucleotide sequencing revealed the complete ucaA gene of 540 bp (from strain IVB247) encoding a polypeptide of 180 amino acids, including a 22 amino acid signal sequence peptide, and the pmpA (P. mirabilis P-like pili) gene of 549 bp (from strain IVB219) encoding a polypeptide of 183 amino acids, including a 23 amino acid signal sequence. Hybridization experiments gave clear indications of the presence of both kinds of fimbriae in many UTI-related canine P. mirabilis isolates. However, the presence of these fimbriae could not be demonstrated in P. vulgaris or other Proteus-related species. Database analysis of amino acid sequences of major subunit proteins revealed that the UcaA protein shares about 56% amino acid identity with the F17A and F111A major fimbrial subunits from bovine enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli. In turn, the PmpA protein more closely resembled the pyelonephritis-associated pili (Pap)-like major subunit protein from UTI-related E. coli. The evolutionary relationship of UcaA, PmpA and various other fimbrial subunit proteins is presented in a phylogenetic tree.