Entry of Shiga toxin into cells.

The effect of Shiga toxin with mutations in the A fragment has been tested on cells in order to get more information about the processing of the A fragment during entry into the cytosol. A mutant with a deletion between the A1 and A2 domain in the A fragment is resistant to cleavage by trypsin and is less toxic than wild type toxin on both Vero and A431 cells. The results support the view that processing of the A fragment is important for the high toxicity of the wild type toxin. A number of cell lines are resistant to Shiga toxin although they bind the toxin. However, A431 cells can be sensitized by butyric acid treatment, and transport of Shiga toxin to the Golgi apparatus seems to be required for the intoxication in the sensitized cells. The role of retrograde transport through the Golgi apparatus to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) will be discussed.