Toxins 2010, 2(6), 1445-1470; doi:10.3390/toxins2061445
Review

Heat-Labile Enterotoxin: Beyond G M1 Binding

Benjamin Mudrak 1,* email and Meta J. Kuehn 2 email
1 Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA 2 Department of Biochemistry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 29 April 2010; in revised form: 22 May 2010 / Accepted: 7 June 2010 / Published: 14 June 2010
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Enterotoxins)
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Abstract: Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) is a significant source of morbidity and mortality worldwide. One major virulence factor released by ETEC is the heat-labile enterotoxin LT, which is structurally and functionally similar to cholera toxin. LT consists of five B subunits carrying a single catalytically active A subunit. LTB binds the monosialoganglioside GM1, the toxin’s host receptor, but interactions with A-type blood sugars and E. coli lipopolysaccharide have also been identified within the past decade. Here, we review the regulation, assembly, and binding properties of the LT B-subunit pentamer and discuss the possible roles of its numerous molecular interactions.
Keywords: heat-labile enterotoxin; ETEC; GM1; lipopolysaccharide; blood antigen

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Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Mudrak, B.; Kuehn, M.J. Heat-Labile Enterotoxin: Beyond G M1 Binding. Toxins 2010, 2, 1445-1470.

AMA Style

Mudrak B, Kuehn MJ. Heat-Labile Enterotoxin: Beyond G M1 Binding. Toxins. 2010; 2(6):1445-1470.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mudrak, Benjamin; Kuehn, Meta J. 2010. "Heat-Labile Enterotoxin: Beyond G M1 Binding." Toxins 2, no. 6: 1445-1470.

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