Diphtheria Antibodies, Proteins & ELISA Kits

Diphtheria is a global disease caused by the gram-positive bacteria, Corynebacterium diphtheria (C. diphtheria). Humans are the main host for C. diphtheria, whereby the bacteria is primarily present in the upper respiratory tract. Diphtheria is transmitted through airborne droplets when people cough or sneeze.

The symptoms experienced during diphtheria include fever, weakness, malaise, headaches, coalescing pseudomembrane and they can progress to myocarditis, inflammation of the nerves and mortality. There are different types of vaccines which protect against diphtheria and other diseases. One example is the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTaP) vaccine. However, while extensive diphtheria vaccination programs have been a success, there is still the need for further diphtheria research for vaccine development.

The main virulence factor for C. diphtheria is the production of exotoxins such as diphtheria toxin (DT). DT is composed of an A and B subunit. The B subunit binds to heparin binding epidermal growth factor (HB-EGF) on host cells. This allows the DT A subunit to cleave nicotinamide from nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) and catalyze ADP-ribosylation of elongation factor 2 (EF-2), inhibiting protein synthesis.

A key area of research is the immune response against C. diphtheria. It has been shown that both toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) and C-type lectin receptor (CLR) mincle recognize cell wall extracts of C. diphtheria, resulting in macrophage activation. These macrophages then trigger the stimulation of other immune cells for an immune response to be mounted against the invading pathogen.

There have been numerous studies performed which have examined the cellular response in individuals who have received their DTaP vaccination. In these studies there were a number of cytokines produced after DTaP administration such as interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta), IL-6, granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1). 7 days after immunization, peak IL-4 and TNF-alpha levels were observed. As well as this, it was discovered that G-CSF administration plays an important role in enhancing the production of diphtheria specific antibodies and a greater recruitment of CD11b⁺ dendritic cells (DCs) to the injection site following DTaP vaccination.

Immunometabolism is an important area of science which encompasses regions of metabolism and immunology. Many of the functional capacities of immune cells are dependent on the metabolic state of the cell and its capability to mount an immune response.

Previous studies examined the effect of the cord factor of C. diphtheria on mouse liver mitochondria and it was found that oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) was disrupted. However, at present there is very little research covering how immune cell metabolism in humans is affected by diphtheria infections, meaning it represents a potential research area for future investigations. Assay Genie provides a wide range of immunometabolism assays such as glycolysis, fatty acid oxidation, the citric acid (TCA) cycle and OXPHOS assays kits.

Animal models are useful research tools which are often used in early stages of therapeutic product development and pathogenesis studies. While humans are the primary hosts of C. diphtheria, animals can be used to study the mechanisms of diphtheria disease. For example, mice and guinea pigs are animal models which have been used to access the immunogenicity of diphtheria vaccines. As well as this, they have also been used to study the effects of DT on the immune response.