# Vibrio vulnificus toxin-receptor interactions

> **NIH NIH R21** · NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $199,375

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Vibrio vulnificus is a Gram-negative bacterial pathogen that causes severe life-threatening infections in
humans after eating shellfish or swimming in warm seawater. In the US, there are about 200 cases annually
with high rates of mortality and morbidity. While the number of cases is low compared to other food-borne
pathogens, the high rates of death among patients exerts a significant burden on human life and the economy.
This is expected to increase as incidence of V. vulnificus infections is rising due to the climate crisis. The most
prominent virulence factor of V. vulnificus is a 5208 aa MARTX family toxin that delivers cytotoxic effectors to
cells and these effectors are essential for virulence in a mouse model. While extensive information is known
about the mechanisms of the effectors, very little is known about the remaining over 2800 aa of the protein
toxin. These regions are known to be both necessary and sufficient for secretion of the toxin from the bacteria,
interaction of the toxin with the eukaryotic cell surface, and translocation of the effectors across the plasma
membrane. The project proposes to identify host cell receptors and host factors essential for intoxication using
a genetic screen and selection for mutant cells that survive the cytolytic action of the toxin. We will also use a
structure-function based approach to identify regions of the MARTX toxin essential for Type I secretion from
the bacterium, binding of the toxin to a putative surface receptor, formation of a pore in the plasma membrane,
and translocation of effectors to the eukaryotic cell cytosol. This study will advance our understanding of the
function of the MARTX toxin repeat regions in detail and is expected to impact our understanding of
pathophysiology during V. vulnificus infection.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10198737
- **Project number:** 5R21AI149061-02
- **Recipient organization:** NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Karla J F Satchell
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $199,375
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-06-19 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10198737

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10198737, Vibrio vulnificus toxin-receptor interactions (5R21AI149061-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10198737. Licensed CC0.

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