Title: Cholera toxin B: one subunit with many pharmaceutical applications.

Authors: Baldauf, Keegan J; Royal, Joshua M; Hamorsky, Krystal Teasley; Matoba, Nobuyuki

Published In Toxins (Basel), (2015 Mar 20)

Abstract: Cholera, a waterborne acute diarrheal disease caused by Vibrio cholerae, remains prevalent in underdeveloped countries and is a serious health threat to those living in unsanitary conditions. The major virulence factor is cholera toxin (CT), which consists of two subunits: the A subunit (CTA) and the B subunit (CTB). CTB is a 55 kD homopentameric, non-toxic protein binding to the GM1 ganglioside on mammalian cells with high affinity. Currently, recombinantly produced CTB is used as a component of an internationally licensed oral cholera vaccine, as the protein induces potent humoral immunity that can neutralize CT in the gut. Additionally, recent studies have revealed that CTB administration leads to the induction of anti-inflammatory mechanisms in vivo. This review will cover the potential of CTB as an immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory agent. We will also summarize various recombinant expression systems available for recombinant CTB bioproduction.

PubMed ID: 25802972

MeSH Terms: Anti-Inflammatory Agents/immunology; Anti-Inflammatory Agents/pharmacology; Cholera Toxin/biosynthesis; Cholera Toxin/immunology; Cholera Toxin/pharmacology*; Cholera Vaccines/chemistry; Cholera Vaccines/immunology; G(M1) Ganglioside/metabolism; Protein Binding; Protein Conformation; Recombinant Proteins/biosynthesis; Recombinant Proteins/immunology; Vibrio cholerae/chemistry