1.C.12.1.17
Inerolysin (INY) or cholesterol-dependent cytolysin of 519 aas and one N-terminal TMS. Lactobacillus iners is a prevalent constituent of healthy vaginal microbiota, but it produces this cytotoxin (Pleckaityte 2019). INY-induced damage of artificial membranes is directly dependent on the cholesterol concentration in the bilayer, whereas VLY (TC# 1.C.12.1.16)-induced damage occurs only with high levels of membrane cholesterol (>40 mol%) (Ragaliauskas et al. 2019). VLY primarily forms membrane-embedded complete rings in the synthetic bilayer, whereas INY forms arciform structures with smaller pore sizes. VLY activity is high at elevated pH, which is characteristic of BV, whereas INY activity is high at more acidic pH, which is specific for a healthy vagina (Pleckaityte 2019).