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Tsagmo JMN, Rotureau B, Calvo Alvarez E. Animal models of neglected parasitic diseases: In vivo multimodal imaging of experimental trypanosomatid infections. Methods Cell Biol 2024; 188:205-236. [PMID: 38880525 DOI: 10.1016/bs.mcb.2024.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2024]
Abstract
African trypanosomiases and leishmaniases are significant neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) that affect millions globally, with severe health and socio-economic consequences, especially in endemic regions. Understanding the pathogenesis and dissemination of Trypanosoma brucei and Leishmania spp. parasites within their hosts is pivotal for the development of effective interventions. Whole-body bioluminescence and fluorescence imaging systems (BLI and FLI, respectively), are powerful tools to visualize and quantify the progression and distribution of these parasites in real-time within live animal models. By combining this technology with the engineering of stable T. brucei and Leishmania spp. strains expressing luciferase and/or fluorescent proteins, crucial aspects of the infection process including the parasites' homing, the infection dynamics, the tissue tropism, or the efficacy of experimental treatments and vaccines can be deeply investigated. This methodology allows for enhanced sensitivity and resolution, elucidating previously unrecognized infection niches and dynamics. Importantly, whole-body in vivo imaging is non-invasive, enabling for longitudinal studies during the course of an infection in the same animal, thereby aligning with the "3Rs" principle of animal research. Here, we detail a protocol for the generation of dual-reporter T. brucei and L. major, and their use to infect mice and follow the spatiotemporal dynamics of infection by in vivo imaging systems. Additionally, 3D micro-computed tomography (μCT) coupled to BLI in T. brucei-infected animals is applied to gain insights into the anatomical parasite distribution. This Chapter underscores the potential of these bioimaging modalities as indispensable tools in parasitology, paving the way for novel therapeutic strategies and deeper insights into host-parasite interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean Marc Ngoune Tsagmo
- Trypanosome Transmission Group, Trypanosome Cell Biology Unit, INSERM U1201, Department of Parasites and Insect Vectors, Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France
| | - Brice Rotureau
- Trypanosome Transmission Group, Trypanosome Cell Biology Unit, INSERM U1201, Department of Parasites and Insect Vectors, Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Paris, France; Parasitology Unit, Institut Pasteur of Guinea, Conakry, Guinea
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Wei Y, He T, Bi Q, Yang H, Hu X, Jin R, Liang H, Zhu Y, Tong R, Nie Y. A cationic lipid with advanced membrane fusion performance for pDNA and mRNA delivery. J Mater Chem B 2023; 11:2095-2107. [PMID: 36810919 DOI: 10.1039/d2tb02783f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
The success of mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 prevention raised global awareness of the importance of nucleic acid drugs. The approved systems for nucleic acid delivery were mainly formulations of different lipids, yielding lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) with complex internal structures. Due to the multiple components, the relationship between the structure of each component and the overall biological activity of LNPs is hard to study. However, ionizable lipids have been extensively explored. In contrast to former studies on the optimization of hydrophilic parts in single-component self-assemblies, we report in this study on structural alterations of the hydrophobic segment. We synthesize a library of amphiphilic cationic lipids by varying the lengths (C = 8-18), numbers (N = 2, 4), and unsaturation degrees (Ω = 0, 1) of hydrophobic tails. Notably, all self-assemblies with nucleic acid have significant differences in particle size, stability in serum, membrane fusion, and fluidity. Moreover, the novel mRNA/pDNA formulations are characterized by overall low cytotoxicity, efficient compaction, protection, and release of nucleic acids. We find that the length of hydrophobic tails dominates the formation and stability of the assembly. And at a certain length, the unsaturated hydrophobic tails enhance the membrane fusion and fluidity of assemblies and thus significantly affect the transgene expression, followed by the number of hydrophobic tails.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Wei
- National Engineering Research Center for Biomaterials/College of Biomedical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China.
| | - Ting He
- National Engineering Research Center for Biomaterials/College of Biomedical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China.
| | - Qunjie Bi
- National Engineering Research Center for Biomaterials/College of Biomedical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China.
| | - Huan Yang
- National Engineering Research Center for Biomaterials/College of Biomedical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China.
| | - Xueyi Hu
- National Engineering Research Center for Biomaterials/College of Biomedical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China.
| | - Rongrong Jin
- National Engineering Research Center for Biomaterials/College of Biomedical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China.
| | - Hong Liang
- Department of Pharmacy, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610072, China. .,Personalized Drug Therapy Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610072, China
| | - Yongqun Zhu
- Life Sciences Institute and Innovation Center for Cell Signaling Network, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Rongsheng Tong
- Department of Pharmacy, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610072, China. .,Personalized Drug Therapy Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610072, China
| | - Yu Nie
- National Engineering Research Center for Biomaterials/College of Biomedical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China.
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Boy RL, Hong A, Aoki JI, Floeter-Winter LM, Laranjeira-Silva MF. Reporter gene systems: a powerful tool for Leishmania studies. CURRENT RESEARCH IN MICROBIAL SCIENCES 2022; 3:100165. [DOI: 10.1016/j.crmicr.2022.100165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022] Open
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Cohen A, Azas N. Challenges and Tools for In Vitro Leishmania Exploratory Screening in the Drug Development Process: An Updated Review. Pathogens 2021; 10:1608. [PMID: 34959563 PMCID: PMC8703296 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10121608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2021] [Revised: 12/03/2021] [Accepted: 12/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Leishmaniases are a group of vector-borne diseases caused by infection with the protozoan parasites Leishmania spp. Some of them, such as Mediterranean visceral leishmaniasis, are zoonotic diseases transmitted from vertebrate to vertebrate by a hematophagous insect, the sand fly. As there is an endemic in more than 90 countries worldwide, this complex and major health problem has different clinical forms depending on the parasite species involved, with the visceral form being the most worrying since it is fatal when left untreated. Nevertheless, currently available antileishmanial therapies are significantly limited (low efficacy, toxicity, adverse side effects, drug-resistance, length of treatment, and cost), so there is an urgent need to discover new compounds with antileishmanial activity, which are ideally inexpensive and orally administrable with few side effects and a novel mechanism of action. Therefore, various powerful approaches were recently applied in many interesting antileishmanial drug development programs. The objective of this review is to focus on the very first step in developing a potential drug and to identify the exploratory methods currently used to screen in vitro hit compounds and the challenges involved, particularly in terms of harmonizing the results of work carried out by different research teams. This review also aims to identify innovative screening tools and methods for more extensive use in the drug development process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anita Cohen
- IHU Méditerranée Infection, Aix Marseille University, IRD (Institut de Recherche pour le Développement), AP-HM (Assistance Publique—Hôpitaux de Marseille), SSA (Service de Santé des Armées), VITROME (Vecteurs—Infections Tropicales et Méditerranéennes), 13005 Marseille, France;
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Nahidi S, Gholami E, Taslimi Y, Habibzadeh S, Seyed N, Davarpanah E, Ghanadan A, Rafati S, Taheri T. The outcome of arginase activity inhibition in BALB/c mice hosting Leishmania tropica. Parasite Immunol 2020; 42:e12691. [PMID: 31811772 DOI: 10.1111/pim.12691] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2019] [Revised: 11/25/2019] [Accepted: 12/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Two species of Leishmania (L), L. tropica and L. major, are among the main causative agents of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Arginase (ARG) is an essential enzyme for cell growth, thus an attractive drug target. In this study, we tried to survey the inhibitory impact of ARG by nor-NOHA (N-ω-hydroxy-L-nor-arginine) on in vivo infection caused by L. tropica. BALB/c mice were inoculated with L. tropicaEGFP-LUC (Ltrop) or L. majorEGFP-LUC (Lmj) and then were treated by nor-NOHA. ARG inhibitor only indicated a delay in generation of a cutaneous lesion in inoculated footpad with nor-NOHA-Ltrop and nor-NOHA-Lmj. ARG activity has been significantly reduced in nor-NOHA-Ltrop group. In this group, ARG activity inhibition correlated with increased levels of nitric oxide (NO). In both inoculated mice with Ltrop or Lmj, parasite load showed a significant decrease at later steps during the CL course post-treatment. In vivo bioluminescence intensity did not show any ARG's inhibitory effect on treated-Ltrop. The findings verified that the ARG activity may partially control the L. tropica infection in BALB/c mice through reduction of parasite proliferation and parasite killing through NO generation. This effect is dose-dependent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shima Nahidi
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Elham Gholami
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Yasaman Taslimi
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Sima Habibzadeh
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Negar Seyed
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Elaheh Davarpanah
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Alireza Ghanadan
- Depatment of Dermatopathology, Razi Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.,Department of Pathology, Cancer Institute, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Sima Rafati
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Tahereh Taheri
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
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Calvo-Alvarez E, Cren-Travaillé C, Crouzols A, Rotureau B. A new chimeric triple reporter fusion protein as a tool for in vitro and in vivo multimodal imaging to monitor the development of African trypanosomes and Leishmania parasites. INFECTION, GENETICS AND EVOLUTION : JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR EPIDEMIOLOGY AND EVOLUTIONARY GENETICS IN INFECTIOUS DISEASES 2018; 63:391-403. [PMID: 29339220 DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2018.01.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2017] [Revised: 01/09/2018] [Accepted: 01/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Trypanosomiases and leishmaniases, caused by a group of related protist parasites, are Neglected Tropical Diseases currently threatening >500 million people worldwide. Reporter proteins have revolutionised the research on infectious diseases and have opened up new advances in the understanding of trypanosomatid-borne diseases in terms of both biology, pathogenesis and drug development. Here, we describe the generation and some applications of a new chimeric triple reporter fusion protein combining the red-shifted firefly luciferase PpyREH9 and the tdTomato red fluorescent protein, fused by the TY1 tag. Expressed in both Trypanosoma brucei brucei and Leishmania major transgenic parasites, this construct was successfully assessed on different state-of-the-art imaging technologies, at different scales ranging from whole organism to cellular level, both in vitro and in vivo in murine models. For T. b. brucei, the usefulness of this triple marker to monitor the entire parasite cycle in both tsetse flies and mice was further demonstrated. This stable reporter allows to qualitatively and quantitatively scrutinize in real-time several crucial aspects of the parasite's development, including the development of African trypanosomes in the dermis of the mammalian host. We briefly discuss developments in bio-imaging technologies and highlight how we could improve our understanding of parasitism by combining the genetic engineering of parasites to the one of the hosting organisms in which they complete their developmental program.
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Affiliation(s)
- Estefania Calvo-Alvarez
- Trypanosome Transmission Group, Trypanosome Cell Biology Unit, Institut Pasteur and INSERM U1201, Paris, France.
| | - Christelle Cren-Travaillé
- Trypanosome Transmission Group, Trypanosome Cell Biology Unit, Institut Pasteur and INSERM U1201, Paris, France
| | - Aline Crouzols
- Trypanosome Transmission Group, Trypanosome Cell Biology Unit, Institut Pasteur and INSERM U1201, Paris, France
| | - Brice Rotureau
- Trypanosome Transmission Group, Trypanosome Cell Biology Unit, Institut Pasteur and INSERM U1201, Paris, France
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Hussein HE, Bastos RG, Schneider DA, Johnson WC, Adham FK, Davis WC, Laughery JM, Herndon DR, Alzan HF, Ueti MW, Suarez CE. The Babesia bovis hap2 gene is not required for blood stage replication, but expressed upon in vitro sexual stage induction. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2017; 11:e0005965. [PMID: 28985216 PMCID: PMC5646870 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0005965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2017] [Revised: 10/18/2017] [Accepted: 09/14/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Babesia bovis, is a tick borne apicomplexan parasite responsible for important cattle losses globally. Babesia parasites have a complex life cycle including asexual replication in the mammalian host and sexual reproduction in the tick vector. Novel control strategies aimed at limiting transmission of the parasite are needed, but transmission blocking vaccine candidates remain undefined. Expression of HAP2 has been recognized as critical for the fertilization of parasites in the Babesia-related Plasmodium, and is a leading candidate for a transmission blocking vaccine against malaria. Hereby we identified the B. bovis hap2 gene and demonstrated that it is widely conserved and differentially transcribed during development within the tick midgut, but not by blood stage parasites. The hap2 gene was disrupted by transfecting B. bovis with a plasmid containing the flanking regions of the hap2 gene and the GPF-BSD gene under the control of the ef-1α-B promoter. Comparison of in vitro growth between a hap2-KO B. bovis clonal line and its parental wild type strain showed that HAP2 is not required for the development of B. bovis in erythrocytes. However, xanthurenic acid-in vitro induction experiments of sexual stages of parasites recovered after tick transmission resulted in surface expression of HAP2 exclusively in sexual stage induced parasites. In addition, hap2-KO parasites were not able to develop such sexual stages as defined both by morphology and by expression of the B. bovis sexual marker genes 6-Cys A and B. Together, the data strongly suggests that tick midgut stage differential expression of hap2 is associated with the development of B. bovis sexual forms. Overall these studies are consistent with a role of HAP2 in tick stages of the parasite and suggest that HAP2 is a potential candidate for a transmission blocking vaccine against bovine babesiosis. Babesia bovis, is a tick borne apicomplexan parasite responsible for important cattle losses globally. Babesia parasites have a complex life cycle including asexual replication in the mammalian host and sexual reproduction in the tick vector. Novel control strategies aimed at limiting transmission of the parasite are needed, but transmission blocking vaccine candidates remain undefined. In this study we analyze the conservation and role of the hap2 gene in the erythrocyte stage of the life cycle of the parasite and found that expression of the gene is not required for the development of the parasite in erythrocytic stages, using a hap2 mutated parasite line. In addition, we developed an in vitro system for the induction of sexual forms of B. bovis and found expression of the hap2 gene and surface localization of the protein. However, hap2-KO parasites are unable to develop sexual stages. We concluded that HAP2 is a leading candidate for a transmission blocking vaccine against bovine babesiosis due of the high level of conservation, surface exposure, and specific expression in tick stage and in in vitro induced sexual stages parasites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hala E. Hussein
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States of America
- Department of Entomology, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt
| | - Reginaldo G. Bastos
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States of America
| | - David A. Schneider
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States of America
- Animal Disease Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Pullman, WA, United States of America
| | - Wendell C. Johnson
- Animal Disease Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Pullman, WA, United States of America
| | - Fatma K. Adham
- Department of Entomology, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt
| | - William C. Davis
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States of America
| | - Jacob M. Laughery
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States of America
| | - David R. Herndon
- Animal Disease Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Pullman, WA, United States of America
| | - Heba F. Alzan
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States of America
- Parasitology and Animal Diseases Department, National Research Center, Egypt
| | - Massaro W. Ueti
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States of America
- Animal Disease Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Pullman, WA, United States of America
| | - Carlos E. Suarez
- Animal Disease Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Pullman, WA, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Use of Optical Imaging Technology in the Validation of a New, Rapid, Cost-Effective Drug Screen as Part of a Tiered In Vivo Screening Paradigm for Development of Drugs To Treat Cutaneous Leishmaniasis. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2017; 61:AAC.02048-16. [PMID: 28137819 PMCID: PMC5365718 DOI: 10.1128/aac.02048-16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2016] [Accepted: 01/22/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In any drug discovery and development effort, a reduction in the time of the lead optimization cycle is critical to decrease the time to license and reduce costs. In addition, ethical guidelines call for the more ethical use of animals to minimize the number of animals used and decrease their suffering. Therefore, any effort to develop drugs to treat cutaneous leishmaniasis requires multiple tiers of in vivo testing that start with higher-throughput efficacy assessments and progress to lower-throughput models with the most clinical relevance. Here, we describe the validation of a high-throughput, first-tier, noninvasive model of lesion suppression that uses an in vivo optical imaging technology for the initial screening of compounds. A strong correlation between luciferase activity and the parasite load at up to 18 days postinfection was found. This correlation allows the direct assessment of the effects of drug treatment on parasite burden. We demonstrate that there is a strong correlation between drug efficacy measured on day 18 postinfection and the suppression of lesion size by day 60 postinfection, which allows us to reach an accurate conclusion on drug efficacy in only 18 days. Compounds demonstrating a significant reduction in the bioluminescence signal compared to that in control animals can be tested in lower-throughput, more definitive tests of lesion cure in BALB/c mice and Golden Syrian hamsters (GSH) using Old World and New World parasites.
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Cannet A, Akhoundi M, Michel G, Marty P, Delaunay P. Experimental infection of Phlebotomus perniciosus by bioluminescent Leishmania infantum using murine model and artificial feeder. Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 2017; 111:495-500. [PMID: 27439032 PMCID: PMC4981113 DOI: 10.1590/0074-02760160100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2016] [Accepted: 06/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Leishmaniasis is a vector-borne disease that is transmitted by sandflies and caused by obligate intracellular protozoa of the genus Leishmania. In the present study, we carried out a screening on the experimental infection of Phlebotomus pernioucus by bioluminescent Leishmania infantum using murine model and artificial feeder. We developed a real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)-based method to determine individually the number of Leishmania promastigotes fed by infected flies. Among 1840 new emerged female sand flies, 428 were fed on the infected mice. After their death, they were analysed individually by RT-PCR. Our results demonstrated just a single Leishmania positive female at sixth day post meal. A total of 1070 female sand flies were exposed in contact with artificial feeder containing the human blood with two different quantities of Leishmania parasites: 2.106/mL and 1.107/mL. A blood meal including 1.107/mL LUC-promastigotes was proposed to 270 females and 75 (28%) flies were engorged. Among them, 44 (59%) were positive by RT-PCR analysis, with a relative average of 50551 Leishmania parasites. In case of blood feeding of females with 2.106/mL promastigotes, 57 out of 800 (7%) females succeed to feed from artificial feeder which 22 (39%) were positive with a relative average of 6487 parasites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnaud Cannet
- Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Centre Méditerranéen de Médecine Moléculaire, Nice, France
| | - Mohammad Akhoundi
- Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Hôpital de l'Archet, Service de Parasitologie-Mycologie, Nice, France
| | - Gregory Michel
- Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Centre Méditerranéen de Médecine Moléculaire, Nice, France
| | - Pierre Marty
- Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Centre Méditerranéen de Médecine Moléculaire, Nice, France.,Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Hôpital de l'Archet, Service de Parasitologie-Mycologie, Nice, France
| | - Pascal Delaunay
- Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Centre Méditerranéen de Médecine Moléculaire, Nice, France.,Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Hôpital de l'Archet, Service de Parasitologie-Mycologie, Nice, France
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Abstract
Transfection technology is an important tool in the investigation of gene function and the modulation of gene expression, thereby contributing to the advancement of basic cellular research, drug discovery, and target validation. Creation of the mutant cells through gene disruption and exogenous protein expression with noticeable phenotype like reporter genes are among other key applications. In this chapter, protocols for generating recombinant Leishmania expressing EGFP or EGFP-Luciferase and their applications are given in detail.
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Leishmania-based expression systems. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2016; 100:7377-85. [DOI: 10.1007/s00253-016-7712-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2016] [Revised: 06/22/2016] [Accepted: 06/27/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
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Taslimi Y, Zahedifard F, Habibzadeh S, Taheri T, Abbaspour H, Sadeghipour A, Mohit E, Rafati S. Antitumor Effect of IP-10 by Using Two Different Approaches: Live Delivery System and Gene Therapy. J Breast Cancer 2016; 19:34-44. [PMID: 27066094 PMCID: PMC4822105 DOI: 10.4048/jbc.2016.19.1.34] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2015] [Accepted: 01/26/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose Immunotherapy is one of the treatment strategies for breast cancer, the most common cancer in women worldwide. In this approach, the patient's immune system is stimulated to attack microscopic tumors and control metastasis. Here, we used interferon γ-induced protein 10 (IP-10), which induces and strengthens antitumor immunity, as an immunotherapeutic agent. We employed Leishmania tarentolae, a nonpathogenic lizard parasite that lacks the ability to persist in mammalian macrophages, was used as a live delivery system for carrying the immunotherapeutic agent. It has been already shown that arginase activity, and consequently, polyamine production, are associated with tumor progression. Methods A live delivery system was constructed by stable transfection of pLEXSY plasmid containing the IP-10-enhanced green fluorescent protein (IP-10-egfp) fusion gene into L. tarentolae. Then, the presence of the IP-10-egfp gene and the accurate integration location into the parasite genome were confirmed. The therapeutic efficacy of IP-10 delivered via L. tarentolae and recombinant pcDNA-(IP-10-egfp) plasmid was compared by determining the arginase activity in a mouse 4T1 breast cancer model. Results The pcDNA-(IP-10-egfp) group showed a significant reduction in tumor weight and growth. Histological evaluation also revealed that only this group demonstrated inhibition of metastasis to the lung tissue. The arginase activity in the tissue of the pcDNA-(IP-10-egfp) mice significantly decreased in comparison with that in normal mice. No significant difference was observed in arginase activity in the sera of mice receiving other therapeutic strategies. Conclusion Our data indicates that IP-10 immunotherapy is a promising strategy for breast cancer treatment, as shown in the 4T1-implanted BALB/c mouse model. However, the L. tarentolae-(IP-10-EGFP) live delivery system requires dose modifications to achieve efficacy in the applied regimen (six injections in 3 weeks). Our results indicate that the arginase assay could be a good biomarker to differentiate tumoral tissues from the normal ones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasaman Taslimi
- Department of Biology, College of Basic Sciences, Damghan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Damghan, Iran.; Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Farnaz Zahedifard
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Sima Habibzadeh
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Tahereh Taheri
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Hossain Abbaspour
- Department of Biology, College of Basic Sciences, Damghan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Damghan, Iran
| | - Alireza Sadeghipour
- Department of Pathology, Hazrat-e-Rasoul Akram Hospital, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Elham Mohit
- Department of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Pharmacy, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Sima Rafati
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
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Heidari-Kharaji M, Taheri T, Doroud D, Habibzadeh S, Rafati S. Solid lipid nanoparticle loaded with paromomycin: in vivo efficacy against Leishmania tropica infection in BALB/c mice model. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2016; 100:7051-60. [DOI: 10.1007/s00253-016-7422-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2016] [Revised: 02/22/2016] [Accepted: 02/24/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Pinheiro IM, Carvalho IP, de Carvalho CES, Brito LM, da Silva ABS, Conde Júnior AM, de Carvalho FAA, Carvalho ALM. Evaluation of the in vivo leishmanicidal activity of amphotericin B emulgel: An alternative for the treatment of skin leishmaniasis. Exp Parasitol 2016; 164:49-55. [PMID: 26902606 DOI: 10.1016/j.exppara.2016.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2015] [Revised: 02/15/2016] [Accepted: 02/17/2016] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
The American Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (ACL) is an infectious disease that can be fatal. The first line of treatment is pentavalent antimonies. However, due to its potential to develop resistance, Amphotericin B (AmB) started to be used as an alternative medicine. Current treatments are limited, a fact that has led to a growing interesting in developing new therapies. This study aims to evaluate the therapeutic potential in vivo of an amphotericin B + oleic acid (OA) emulgel in the treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis in an experimental model. Strains of Leishmania major MHOM/IL/80/Friendlin of Leishmania major were used. The animals were inoculated subcutaneously. After the development of leishmanial, nodular or ulcerative lesions, the animals were divided into three groups (control, Group A and Group B) and treated twice a day for twelve days. The weight of the animals was measured and the size of the lesions was observed. A histopathological analysis was performed with skin fragments of lesions and with the spleen of animals treated with different treatments (emulgel, AmB 3% emulgel and AmB 3% plus OA 5% emulgel). It was observed that when subjected to treatment with AmB 3% emulgel during the study period using both formulations, with enhancer and without enhancer, ulcerative lesions regress gradually or even complete cure. The quantification of the average number of parasites recovered from the inoculation site was made after the treatment in each group and the differences were considered significant. The treatment with AmB 3% and OA 5% emulgel had the best in vivo therapeutic response, showing good prospects for cutaneous leishmaniasis therapy as an alternative therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ivana Pereira Carvalho
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | | | - Lucas Moreira Brito
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Farmacologia, Universidade Federal do Piauí, Brazil
| | | | - Airton Mendes Conde Júnior
- Adjunto do Departamento de Morfologia do Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Piauí, Brazil
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15
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EGFP reporter protein: its immunogenicity in Leishmania-infected BALB/c mice. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2015; 100:3923-34. [PMID: 26685673 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-015-7201-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2015] [Revised: 11/23/2015] [Accepted: 11/25/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Optical reporter genes such as green fluorescent protein (GFP) and luciferase are efficiently and widely used in monitoring and studying the protective/therapeutic potential of candidate agents in leishmaniasis. But several observations and controversial reports have generated a main concern, whether enhanced GFP (EGFP) affects immune response. To address this issue, we studied the immunogenicity of EGFP in vivo by two lines of stably transfected parasites (Leishmania major (EGFP) or L. major (EGFP-LUC)) in BALB/c model and/or as a recombinant protein (rEGFP) produced in vitro by bacteria in parallel. Disease progression was followed by footpad swelling measurements and parasite burden in draining lymph nodes using microtitration assay and real-time PCR, and immune responses were also evaluated in spleen. EGFP-expressing parasites generated larger swellings in comparison with wild-type (L. major) while mice immunized with rEGFP and challenged with wild-type parasite were quite comparable in footpad swelling with control group without significant difference. However, both conventional and molecular approaches revealed no significant difference in parasite load between different groups. More importantly, no significant inflammatory responses were detected in groups with higher swelling size measured by interferon-γ (IFN-γ), interleukin (IL)-10, IL-5, and nitric oxide against frozen and thawed lysate of parasite as stimulator. Altogether, these results clearly revealed that EGFP protein expressed in prokaryotic and eukaryotic hosts is not an immunological reactive molecule and acts as a neutral protein without any side effects in mice. So, EGFP expressing Leishmania could be a safe and reliable substitution for wild-types that simplifies in situ follow-up and eliminates the animal scarification wherever needed during the study.
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Mears ER, Modabber F, Don R, Johnson GE. A Review: The Current In Vivo Models for the Discovery and Utility of New Anti-leishmanial Drugs Targeting Cutaneous Leishmaniasis. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2015; 9:e0003889. [PMID: 26334763 PMCID: PMC4559374 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0003889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The current in vivo models for the utility and discovery of new potential anti-leishmanial drugs targeting Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (CL) differ vastly in their immunological responses to the disease and clinical presentation of symptoms. Animal models that show similarities to the human form of CL after infection with Leishmania should be more representative as to the effect of the parasite within a human. Thus, these models are used to evaluate the efficacy of new anti-leishmanial compounds before human clinical trials. Current animal models aim to investigate (i) host–parasite interactions, (ii) pathogenesis, (iii) biochemical changes/pathways, (iv) in vivo maintenance of parasites, and (v) clinical evaluation of drug candidates. This review focuses on the trends of infection observed between Leishmania parasites, the predictability of different strains, and the determination of parasite load. These factors were used to investigate the overall effectiveness of the current animal models. The main aim was to assess the efficacy and limitations of the various CL models and their potential for drug discovery and evaluation. In conclusion, we found that the following models are the most suitable for the assessment of anti-leishmanial drugs: L. major–C57BL/6 mice (or–vervet monkey, or–rhesus monkeys), L. tropica–CsS-16 mice, L. amazonensis–CBA mice, L. braziliensis–golden hamster (or–rhesus monkey). We also provide in-depth guidance for which models are not suitable for these investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Rose Mears
- College of Medicine, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- * E-mail:
| | - Farrokh Modabber
- Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative, Geneva, Switzerland
- Center for Research and Training on Skin Diseases and Leprosy (CRTSDL), Tehran University Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Robert Don
- Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative, Geneva, Switzerland
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17
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Sadeghi S, Seyed N, Etemadzadeh MH, Abediankenari S, Rafati S, Taheri T. In Vitro Infectivity Assessment by Drug Susceptibility Comparison of Recombinant Leishmania major Expressing Enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein or EGFP-Luciferase Fused Genes with Wild-Type Parasite. THE KOREAN JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY 2015; 53:385-94. [PMID: 26323836 PMCID: PMC4566512 DOI: 10.3347/kjp.2015.53.4.385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2015] [Revised: 05/24/2015] [Accepted: 07/02/2015] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Leishmaniasis is a worldwide uncontrolled parasitic disease due to the lack of effective drug and vaccine. To speed up effective drug development, we need powerful methods to rapidly assess drug effectiveness against the intracellular form of Leishmania in high throughput assays. Reporter gene technology has proven to be an excellent tool for drug screening in vitro. The effects of reporter proteins on parasite infectivity should be identified both in vitro and in vivo. In this research, we initially compared the infectivity rate of recombinant Leishmania major expressing stably enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) alone or EGFP-luciferase (EGFP-LUC) with the wild-type strain. Next, we evaluated the sensitivity of these parasites to amphotericin B (AmB) as a standard drug in 2 parasitic phases, promastigote and amastigote. This comparison was made by MTT and nitric oxide (NO) assay and by quantifying the specific signals derived from reporter genes like EGFP intensity and luciferase activity. To study the amastigote form, both B10R and THP-1 macrophage cell lines were infected in the stationary phase and were exposed to AmB at different time points. Our results clearly revealed that the 3 parasite lines had similar in vitro infectivity rates with comparable parasite-induced levels of NO following interferon-γ/lipopolysaccharide induction. Based on our results we proposed the more reporter gene, the faster and more sensitive evaluation of the drug efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Somayeh Sadeghi
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.,Immunogenetic Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Negar Seyed
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | | | - Saeid Abediankenari
- Immunogenetic Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Sima Rafati
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Tahereh Taheri
- Department of Immunotherapy and Leishmania Vaccine Research, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran
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