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Enzymatic Characteristics and Activities of Gingipains from Porphyromonas gingivalis

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Periodontal Pathogens

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 2210))

Abstract

Porphyromonas gingivalis is a gram-negative, rod-shaped, nonmotile bacterium belonging to the phylum Bacteroidetes. It produces abundant amounts of proteases in both cell-associated and secretory forms, including a group of cysteine proteases referred to as gingipains, which have attracted much attention due to their high proteolytic activity associated with pathogenicity. Gingipains are grouped into arginine (R)-specific (RgpA and RgpB) and lysine (K)-specific (Kgp) types. Both Rgp (collective term for RgpA and RgpB) and Kgp gingipains play crucial roles in the virulence of P. gingivalis, including the degradation of host periodontal tissues, disruption of host defense mechanisms, and loss of viability in host cells, such as fibroblasts and endothelial cells. In addition to their function in virulence, gingipains are also essential for the growth and survival of P. gingivalis in periodontal pockets through the acquisition of amino acids and heme groups. Furthermore, Rgp and Kgp gingipains are critical in processing fimbriae and several bacterial proteins that contribute to hemagglutination, coaggregation, and hemoglobin binding. This chapter describes the methods used to analyze gingipains.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Frontier Life Science, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan

    Tomoko Kadowaki

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  1. Tomoko Kadowaki
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Correspondence to Tomoko Kadowaki .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Microbiology, Department of Oral Biology School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, Ishikari-Tobetsu, Hokkaido, Japan

    Keiji Nagano

  2. Department of Microbiology School of Dentistry, Aichi Gakuin University, Nisshin, Aichi, Japan

    Yoshiaki Hasegawa

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Kadowaki, T. (2021). Enzymatic Characteristics and Activities of Gingipains from Porphyromonas gingivalis. In: Nagano, K., Hasegawa, Y. (eds) Periodontal Pathogens. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2210. Humana, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0939-2_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0939-2_10

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  • Publisher Name: Humana, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-0716-0938-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-0716-0939-2

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