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Publication Abstract from PubMed

Fire ant venom is an extremely potent allergy-inducing agent containing four major allergens, Sol i 1 to Sol i 4, which are the most frequent cause of hypersensitivity reactions to hymenoptera in the southern USA. The crystal structure of recombinant (Baculovirus) major fire ant allergen Sol i 3 has been determined to a resolution of 3.1 A by the method of molecular replacement. The secondary-structure elements of Sol i 3 are arranged in an alpha-beta-alpha sandwich fold consisting of a central antiparallel beta-sheet surrounded on both sides by alpha helices. The overall structure is very similar to that of the homologous wasp venom allergen Ves v 5 with major differences occurring in the solvent-exposed loop regions that contain amino acid insertions. Consequently, the limited conservation of surface chemical properties and topology between Sol i 3 and Ves v 5 may explain the observed lack of relevant cross-reactivity. It is concluded that Sol i 3 recognizes immunoglobulin E antibodies with a distinct set of its own epitopes, which are different from those of Ves v 5. Indeed, the molecular area in Sol i 3 covered by non-conserved residues is large enough to accommodate four unique Sol i 3 epitopes.

Crystal structure of the major allergen from fire ant venom, Sol i 3.,Padavattan S, Schmidt M, Hoffman DR, Markovic-Housley Z J Mol Biol. 2008 Oct 31;383(1):178-85. Epub 2008 Aug 22. PMID:18761353^[1]

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.