Characterisation of the Proteome of Leptospira interrogans Serovar Canicola as a Resource for the Identification of Common Serovar Immunogenic Proteins

Over 230 serovars of Leptospira interrogans have been identified; however few have been completely characterised. The aim of this study was to characterise the proteome of serovar Canicola and to compare this against the serovars of Copenhageni and Pomona. 2D-LC/MS analysis identified 1653 Leptospira proteins in serovar Canicola; 60 of these proteins were common to Copenhageni and Pomona, 16 of which are known to be immunogenic. This study provides the first reported proteome for serovar Canicola and suggests that proteomic comparison of different serovars could be used as a tool for identification of novel target molecules for vaccine development.