Molecular characterization and increased expression of the Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus (L.), T-cell receptor beta chain in response to Streptococcus agalactiae infection

The complete cDNA sequence of the Nile tilapia T-cell receptor (TCR) β chain was cloned using 5' RACE. The full-length, 1263-bp cDNA contained a 942-bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding a 314-amino-acid protein. Sequence analyses revealed that the Nile tilapia TCR β chain contains four conserved cysteine residues involved in the formation of disulphide bridges and a conserved amino acid motif believed to be important for assembly and signalling of the TCR αβ/CD3 complex, both of which are normally found in the TCR β chain of other vertebrates. As detected using semi-quantitative and quantitative RT-PCR, the highest expression level of TCR β was detected in the thymus. Interestingly, Streptococcus agalactiae significantly induced the up-regulation of the TCR β chain, and the strongest up-regulation was detected in the brain and peripheral blood leucocytes (PBLs). In in vitro experiments, concanavalin A and Aeromonas hydrophila were found to significantly increase the expression of the TCR β chain in PBLs after 48 h (P < 0.01) and 72 h (P < 0.05), respectively. Furthermore, real-time PCR analysis showed that intraperitoneal injection (IP) of 10(7) cfu mL(-1) of S. agalactiae could induce TCR β expression that was greater than the expression observed following administration of 10(9) cfu mL(-1). The presence of the TCR β chain in fish detected in this study suggests the presence of T-cell populations that have been found in higher vertebrates, which may play a crucial functional role in the response to fish pathogens.