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Urbanová V, Lu S, Kalinová E, Martins L, Kozelková T, Dyčka F, Ribeiro JM, Hajdušek O, Perner J, Kopáček P. From the fat body to the hemolymph: Profiling tick immune and storage proteins through transcriptomics and proteomics. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2024; 165:104072. [PMID: 38185274 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2024.104072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2023] [Revised: 01/04/2024] [Accepted: 01/04/2024] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
Ticks are blood-feeding arachnids that are known to transmit various pathogenic microorganisms to their hosts. During blood feeding, ticks activate their metabolism and immune system to efficiently utilise nutrients from the host's blood and complete the feeding process. In contrast to insects, in which the fat body is known to be a central organ that controls essential metabolic processes and immune defense mechanisms, the function of the fat body in tick physiology is still relatively unexplored. To fill this gap, we sought to uncover the repertoire of genes expressed in the fat body associated with trachea (FB/Tr) by analyzing the transcriptome of individual, partially fed (previtellogenic) Ixodes ricinus females. The resulting catalog of individual mRNA sequences reveals a broad repertoire of transcripts encoding proteins involved in nutrient storage and distribution, as well as components of the tick immune system. To gain a detailed insight into the secretory products of FB/Tr specifically involved in inter-tissue transport and humoral immunity, the transcriptomic data were complemented with the proteome of soluble proteins in the hemolymph of partially fed female ticks. Among these proteins, the hemolipoglyco-carrier proteins were predominant. When comparing immune peptides and proteins from the fat body with those produced by hemocytes, we found that the fat body serves as a unique producer of certain immune components. Finally, time-resolved transcriptional regulation of selected immune transcripts from the FB/Tr was examined in response to experimental challenges with model microbes and analyzed by RT-qPCR. Overall, our data show that the fat body of ticks, similar to insects, is an important metabolic tissue that also plays a remarkable role in immune defense against invading microbes. These findings improve our understanding of tick biology and its impact on the transmission of tick-borne pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Urbanová
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Stephen Lu
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Eliška Kalinová
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Larissa Martins
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic; Laboratory of Neurological Infections and Immunity, Rocky Mountain Laboratories - NIH/NIAID, Hamilton, MT, USA
| | - Tereza Kozelková
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic; Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Filip Dyčka
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - José M Ribeiro
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Ondřej Hajdušek
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Perner
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Kopáček
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic.
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Fux AC, Casonato Melo C, Michelini S, Swartzwelter BJ, Neusch A, Italiani P, Himly M. Heterogeneity of Lipopolysaccharide as Source of Variability in Bioassays and LPS-Binding Proteins as Remedy. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24098395. [PMID: 37176105 PMCID: PMC10179214 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24098395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2023] [Revised: 05/03/2023] [Accepted: 05/05/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), also referred to as endotoxin, is the major component of Gram-negative bacteria's outer cell wall. It is one of the main types of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) that are known to elicit severe immune reactions in the event of a pathogen trespassing the epithelial barrier and reaching the bloodstream. Associated symptoms include fever and septic shock, which in severe cases, might even lead to death. Thus, the detection of LPS in medical devices and injectable pharmaceuticals is of utmost importance. However, the term LPS does not describe one single molecule but a diverse class of molecules sharing one common feature: their characteristic chemical structure. Each bacterial species has its own pool of LPS molecules varying in their chemical composition and enabling the aggregation into different supramolecular structures upon release from the bacterial cell wall. As this heterogeneity has consequences for bioassays, we aim to examine the great variability of LPS molecules and their potential to form various supramolecular structures. Furthermore, we describe current LPS quantification methods and the LPS-dependent inflammatory pathway and show how LPS heterogeneity can affect them. With the intent of overcoming these challenges and moving towards a universal approach for targeting LPS, we review current studies concerning LPS-specific binders. Finally, we give perspectives for LPS research and the use of LPS-binding molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra C Fux
- Division of Allergy & Immunology, Department of Biosciences & Medical Biology, Paris Lodron University of Salzburg (PLUS), Hellbrunnerstraße 34, 5020 Salzburg, Austria
- Chemical Biology Department, R&D Reagents, Miltenyi Biotec B.V. & Co. KG, Friedrich-Ebert-Straße 68, 51429 Bergisch Gladbach, Germany
| | - Cristiane Casonato Melo
- Division of Allergy & Immunology, Department of Biosciences & Medical Biology, Paris Lodron University of Salzburg (PLUS), Hellbrunnerstraße 34, 5020 Salzburg, Austria
- Chemical Biology Department, R&D Reagents, Miltenyi Biotec B.V. & Co. KG, Friedrich-Ebert-Straße 68, 51429 Bergisch Gladbach, Germany
| | - Sara Michelini
- Biotechnical Faculty, Department of Biology, University of Ljubljana, Večna pot 111, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Benjamin J Swartzwelter
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, 1601 Campus Delivery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Andreas Neusch
- Experimental Medical Physics, Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf, Universitätsstraße 1, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Paola Italiani
- Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), Via P. Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn (SZN), Villa Comunale, 80121 Naples, Italy
| | - Martin Himly
- Division of Allergy & Immunology, Department of Biosciences & Medical Biology, Paris Lodron University of Salzburg (PLUS), Hellbrunnerstraße 34, 5020 Salzburg, Austria
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