Organization of the Mycoplasma synoviae WVU 1853T vlhA gene locus

Abstract

Mycoplasma synoviae causes respiratory disease and synovitis in poultry. It has two major membrane antigens of approximately 45 to 50 kDa, MSPA and MSPB. Both MSPA and MSPB are encoded by a single gene, vlhA (variable lipoprotein and haemagglutinin), possibly with a post-translational cleavage generating the two proteins. The vlhA gene belongs to a large multigene family, but only one vlhA gene is expressed in any single cell; the other vlhA genes/fragments are transcriptionally silent. In order to characterize the vlhA gene locus, DNA fragments were cloned from three different M. synoviae WVU 1853T genomic DNA libraries and their nucleotide sequences were fully or partially determined. Anal..