cDNA expression library screening and identification of two novel antigens: ubiquitin and receptor for activated C kinase (RACK) homologue, of the fish parasite Trypanosoma carassii.

Trypanosoma carassii is a kinetoplastid parasite infecting cyprinid fish with a high prevalence in nature. Antibodies have been shown to play a protective role in the immune response against this parasite in common carp, Cyprinus carpio. To identify immunogenic and putative protective T. carassii antigens we constructed a lambdaTriplEx2 expression library of the parasite and screened this with pooled carp immune serum collected 6 weeks post-infection. Screening of the library not only revealed ribosomal proteins but identified ubiquitin and a homologue of the receptor for activated C kinase (RACK) as immunogenic proteins. Equivalents of all these proteins have been identified as immunogenic in expression library screenings of other Trypanosomatida, suggesting an evolutionary conservation of their immunogenicity. The possibility that ubiquitin and/or the homologue of RACK could represent protective antigens and be targets for the design of novel therapies is discussed.