The mrp-3 gene is involved in haem efflux and detoxification in a blood-feeding nematode.

Background: Haem is essential but toxic for metazoan organisms. Auxotrophic nematodes can acquire sufficient haem from the environment or their hosts in the meanwhile eliminate or detoxify excessive haem through tightly controlled machinery. In previous work, we reported a role of the unique transporter protein HRG-1 in the haem acquisition and homeostasis of parasitic nematodes.

Genome-wide RNA interference of the nhr gene family in barber's pole worm identified members crucial for larval viability in vitro.

Nuclear hormone receptors (NHRs) are emerging target candidates against nematode infection and resistance. However, there is a lack of comprehensive information on NHR-coding genes in parasitic nematodes. In this study, we curated the nhr gene family for 60 major parasitic nematodes from humans and animals.

An apicoplast-localized deubiquitinase contributes to the cell growth and apicoplast homeostasis of Toxoplasma gondii.

Toxoplasma gondii is among the most important parasites worldwide. The apicoplast is a unique organelle shared by all Apicomplexan protozoa. Increasing lines of evidence suggest that the apicoplast possesses its own ubiquitination system.

RPA-CRISPR/Cas9-based method for the detection of Toxoplasma gondii: A proof of concept.

Toxoplasma gondii is a widespread and specialized intracellular protozoan pathogen that affects one third of the world' s population, posing a great threat to public health. As the definitive host, cats excrete oocysts and play a crucial role in the transmission of toxoplasmosis. The current diagnostic tools usually require bulky equipment and expertize, which hinders the efficient diagnosis and intervention of Toxoplasma infection in cats.

Proteomic differences between extracellular vesicles and extracellular vesicle-depleted excretory/secretory products of barber's pole worm.

Background: Components of excretory/secretory products (ESPs) of helminths have been proposed as vaccine targets and shown to play a role in modulating host immune responses for decades. Such research interest is further increased by the discovery of extracellular vesicles (EVs) in the ESPs of parasitic worms. Although efforts have been made to reveal the cargos of EVs, little is known about the proteomic differences between EVs and canonical ESPs released by parasitic worms from animals.

A secreted BPTI/Kunitz inhibitor domain-containing protein of barber's pole worm interacts with host NLRP3 inflammasome activation-associated G protein subunit to inhibit IL-1β and IL-18 maturation in vitro.

Protease inhibitors are major components of excretory/secretory products released by parasitic nematodes and have been proposed to play roles in host-parasite interactions. Haemonchus contortus (the barber's pole worm) encodes for several serine protease inhibitors, and in a previous study we identified a trypsin inhibitor-like serine protease inhibitor of this blood-feeding nematode, SPI-I8, as necessary for anticoagulation. Here, we demonstrated that a bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor/Kunitz-type serine protease inhibitor (BPTI/Kunitz) domain-containing protein highly expressed in parasitic stages, HCON_00133150, is involved in suppressing proinflammatory cytokine production in mammalian cells.

Parallel detection of multiple zoonotic parasites using a real-time fluorogenic loop-mediated isothermal amplification-based quadruple-sample microfluidic chip.

Zoonotic parasites pose significant health risks globally. In the present study, we combined a microfluidic chip with loop-mediated isothermal amplification (on-chip LAMP) to detect five zoonotic parasites: , , , , and . This method enabled the simultaneous parallel analysis of five genetic markers from a maximum of four samples per chip.

Fatty acid- and retinol-binding protein 6 does not control worm fatty acid content in Caenorhabditis elegans but might play a role in Haemonchus contortus parasitism.

Background: Nematodes have lost the ability to synthesise necessary lipids de novo and have complementally evolved the capacity to acquire fatty acids and their derivatives from a diet or host animal. Nematode-specific fatty acid- and retinol-binding protein (FAR) family is one approach that facilitates lipid acquisition, representing an Achilles heel and potential target against roundworms of socioeconomic significance. However, little is known about their detailed functional roles in either free-living or parasitic nematodes.

PP2Acα-B'/PR61 Holoenzyme of Toxoplasma gondii Is Required for the Amylopectin Metabolism and Proliferation of Tachyzoites.

Here, we report that the inhibition of the PP2A subfamily by okadaic acid results in an accumulation of polysaccharides in the acute infection stage (tachyzoites) of Toxoplasma gondii, which is a protozoan of global zoonotic importance and a model for the apicomplexan parasites. The loss of the catalytic subunit α of PP2A (Δ) in RHΔ leads to the polysaccharide accumulation phenotype in the base of tachyzoites as well as residual bodies and significantly compromises the intracellular growth and the virulence . A metabolomic analysis revealed that the accumulated polysaccharides in Δ are derived from interrupted glucose metabolism, which affects the production of ATP and energy homeostasis in the T.

Redundant targeting signals of the apicoplast-resident protein TgMnmA in Toxoplasma gondii involve trans-organellar function.

The apicoplast, which is the result of secondary endosymbiosis, is a distinctive subcellular organelle and a crucial therapeutic target for apicomplexan parasites. The majority of apicoplast-resident proteins are encoded by the nuclear genome and target the apicoplast via bipartite targeting signals consisting of a signal peptide and a transit peptide. The properties and functions of these peptides are poorly understood, which hinders the identification of apicoplast proteins and the study for plastid evolution.

Haem transporter HRG-1 is essential in the barber's pole worm and an intervention target candidate.

Parasitic roundworms (nematodes) have lost genes involved in the de novo biosynthesis of haem, but have evolved the capacity to acquire and utilise exogenous haem from host animals. However, very little is known about the processes or mechanisms underlying haem acquisition and utilisation in parasites. Here, we reveal that HRG-1 is a conserved and unique haem transporter in a broad range of parasitic nematodes of socioeconomic importance, which enables haem uptake via intestinal cells, facilitates cellular haem utilisation through the endo-lysosomal system, and exhibits a conspicuous distribution at the basal laminae covering the alimentary tract, muscles and gonads.

Host autophagy limits proliferation in the absence of IFN-γ by affecting the hijack of Rab11A-positive vesicles.

Introduction: Autophagy has been recognized as a bona fide immunological process. Evidence has shown that this process in IFN-γ stimulated cells controls proliferation or eliminates its infection. However, little is known about the effect of infection on the host cell autophagy in the absence of IFN-γ.

The non-glycosylated protein of Toxocara canis MUC-1 interacts with proteins of murine macrophages.

Toxocariasis is a neglected parasitic disease caused predominantly by larvae of Toxocara canis. While this zoonotic disease is of major importance in humans and canids, it can also affect a range of other mammalian hosts. It is known that mucins secreted by larvae play key roles in immune recognition and evasion, but very little is understood about the molecular interactions between host cells and T.

The first apicoplast tRNA thiouridylase plays a vital role in the growth of .

Toxoplasmosis caused by the protozoan is one of the most common parasitic diseases in humans and almost all warm-blooded animals. Lys, Glu, and Gln-specific tRNAs contain a super-modified 2-thiourea (sU) derivatives at the position 34, which is essential for all living organisms by maintaining the structural stability and aminoacylation of tRNA, and the precision and efficiency of codon recognition during protein translation. However, the enzyme(s) involved in this modification in remains elusive.

Development of an Immunochromatographic Test Based on Rhoptry Protein 14 for Serological Detection of Infection in Swine.

, a worldwide distributed apicomplexan protozoan, can infect almost all warm-blooded animals and may cause toxoplasmosis. In order to provide a point-of-care detection method for infection, an immunochromatographic test (ICT) was established. The proposed test uses recombinant rhoptry protein 14 (ROP14) conjugated with 20 nm gold particles, recombinant protein A as the detection line and monoclonal antibody TgROP14-5D5 as the control line.

Transthyretin-Like Protein TTR-31 Plays Roles in Post-Embryonic Larval Development and Potentially Apoptosis of Germ Cells.

Transthyretin (TTR)-like proteins play multi-function roles in nematode and are important component of excretory/secretory product in . In this study, we functionally characterised a secretory transthyretin-like protein in the barber's pole worm . A full-length of transthyretin-like protein-coding gene () was identified in this parasitic nematode, representing a counterpart of in .

Annexin A2-Mediated Internalization of into Bovine Mammary Epithelial Cells Requires Its Interaction with Clumping Factor B.

Background: is a leading cause of contagious mastitis in dairy cattle. Internalization of by bovine mammary gland epithelial cells is thought to be responsible for persistent and chronic intramammary infection, but the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood.

Methods: In the present study, we evaluated the role of Annexin A2 (AnxA2), a membrane-binding protein, in invasion into bovine mammary epithelial cell line (MAC-T).

A Zinc Metalloprotease Is Required for Molting and Survival in Parasitic Nematode .

Molting is of great importance for the survival and development of nematodes. Nematode astacins (NAS), a large family of zinc metalloproteases, have been proposed as novel anthelmintic targets due to their multiple roles in biological processes of parasitic nematodes. In this study, we report a well conserved gene in nematodes of clade V and elucidate how this gene is involved in the molting process of the free-living nematode and the parasitic nematode .

Acyl-CoA oxidase ACOX-1 interacts with a peroxin PEX-5 to play roles in larval development of Haemonchus contortus.

Hypobiosis (facultative developmental arrest) is the most important life-cycle adaptation ensuring survival of parasitic nematodes under adverse conditions. Little is known about such survival mechanisms, although ascarosides (ascarylose with fatty acid-derived side chains) have been reported to mediate the formation of dauer larvae in the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Here, we investigated the role of a key gene acox-1, in the larval development of Haemonchus contortus, one of the most important parasitic nematodes that employ hypobiosis as a routine survival mechanism.

The trypsin inhibitor-like domain is required for a serine protease inhibitor of Haemonchus contortus to inhibit host coagulation.

Haemonchus contortus, a blood-feeding nematode, inhibits blood coagulation at the site of infection to facilitate blood-sucking and digesting for successful parasitism. However, the mechanism underlying anti-coagulation at the host-parasite interface is largely unknown. In the current study, Hc-spi-i8, which has two greatly different transcripts named Hc-spi-i8a and Hc-spi-i8b, respectively, was described.

Anti-parasitic Activity of Essential Oil Against .

Toxoplasmosis is a global zoonotic disease, and one-third of the human population is chronically infected by . Due to the limited effectiveness and prominent side effects of the existing drugs, there is a dire need for the discovery of new therapeutic options in the treatment of toxoplasmosis. In this study, five essential oils (EO) were screened for their anti-parasitic activity against .

Emerging Human Babesiosis with "Ground Zero" in North America.

The first case of human babesiosis was reported in the literature in 1957. The clinical disease has sporadically occurred as rare case reports in North America and Europe in the subsequent decades. Since the new millennium, especially in the last decade, many more cases have apparently appeared not only in these regions but also in Asia, South America, and Africa.

Small Indian Mongooses () Serve As Reservoirs of and Vectored by .

Small Indian mongooses (SIMs, ) have invasively inhabited over 60 islands worldwide. They have been confirmed as a reservoir of rabies, leptospirosis, and salmonellosis; however, their role in the epidemiology of other zoonoses is little known. On St.

DNA double-strand breaks in the Toxoplasma gondii-infected cells by the action of reactive oxygen species.

Background: Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate parasite of all warm-blooded animals around the globe. Once infecting a cell, it manipulates the host's DNA damage response that is yet to be elucidated. The objectives of the present study were three-fold: (i) to assess DNA damages in T.