Human serum activates the tegument of female schistosomes and supports recovery from Praziquantel.
Parasitol Res
; 120(1): 209-221, 2021 Jan.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33263166
ABSTRACT
Schistosomiasis is one of the most devastating parasitic disease in the world. Schistosoma spp. survive for decades within the vasculature of their human hosts. They have evolved a vast array of mechanisms to avoid the immune reaction of the host. Due to their sexual dimorphism, with the female worm lying within the gynecophoric canal of the male worm, it is the male that is exposed to the immediate environment and the soluble parts of the host's immune response. To understand how the worms are so successful in fending off the immune attacks of the host, comparative analyses of both worm sexes in human serum (with or without Praziquantel) were performed using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and immunohistochemistry. Further, gene expression analyses of tegument-specific genes were performed. Following the incubation in human serum, males and females out of pairs show morphological changes such as an altered structure of the pits below the surface and an increased number of pits per area. In addition, female schistosomes presented a marked tuft-like repulsion of their opsonized surface. The observed resistance of females to Praziquantel seemed to depend on active proteins in the human serum. Moreover, different expression profiles of tegument-specific genes indicate different functions of female_single and male_single teguments in response to human serum. Our results indicate that female schistosomes developed different evasion strategies toward the host's immune system in comparison to males that might lead to more robustness and has to be taken into account for the development of new anti-schistosomal drugs.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Praziquantel
/
Schistosoma
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Proteínas de Helminto
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Soro
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Anti-Helmínticos
Limite:
Animals
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Female
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Humans
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Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Parasitol Res
Assunto da revista:
PARASITOLOGIA
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Alemanha