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Wang H, Marucci G, Munke A, Hassan MM, Lalle M, Okamoto K. High-resolution comparative atomic structures of two Giardiavirus prototypes infecting G. duodenalis parasite. PLoS Pathog 2024; 20:e1012140. [PMID: 38598600 PMCID: PMC11081498 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1012140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2023] [Revised: 05/09/2024] [Accepted: 03/21/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The Giardia lamblia virus (GLV) is a non-enveloped icosahedral dsRNA and endosymbiont virus that infects the zoonotic protozoan parasite Giardia duodenalis (syn. G. lamblia, G. intestinalis), which is a pathogen of mammals, including humans. Elucidating the transmission mechanism of GLV is crucial for gaining an in-depth understanding of the virulence of the virus in G. duodenalis. GLV belongs to the family Totiviridae, which infects yeast and protozoa intracellularly; however, it also transmits extracellularly, similar to the phylogenetically, distantly related toti-like viruses that infect multicellular hosts. The GLV capsid structure is extensively involved in the longstanding discussion concerning extracellular transmission in Totiviridae and toti-like viruses. Hence, this study constructed the first high-resolution comparative atomic models of two GLV strains, namely GLV-HP and GLV-CAT, which showed different intracellular localization and virulence phenotypes, using cryogenic electron microscopy single-particle analysis. The atomic models of the GLV capsids presented swapped C-terminal extensions, extra surface loops, and a lack of cap-snatching pockets, similar to those of toti-like viruses. However, their open pores and absence of the extra crown protein resemble those of other yeast and protozoan Totiviridae viruses, demonstrating the essential structures for extracellular cell-to-cell transmission. The structural comparison between GLV-HP and GLV-CAT indicates the first evidence of critical structural motifs for the transmission and virulence of GLV in G. duodenalis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Han Wang
- The Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics, Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Gianluca Marucci
- Unit of Foodborne and Neglected Parasitic Diseases, Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), Rome, Italy
| | - Anna Munke
- The Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics, Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Center for Free-Electron Laser Science CFEL, Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Mohammad Maruf Hassan
- The Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics, Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Marco Lalle
- Unit of Foodborne and Neglected Parasitic Diseases, Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), Rome, Italy
| | - Kenta Okamoto
- The Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics, Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
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Petrovic Fabijan A, Iredell J, Danis-Wlodarczyk K, Kebriaei R, Abedon ST. Translating phage therapy into the clinic: Recent accomplishments but continuing challenges. PLoS Biol 2023; 21:e3002119. [PMID: 37220114 PMCID: PMC10204993 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Phage therapy is a medical form of biological control of bacterial infections, one that uses naturally occurring viruses, called bacteriophages or phages, as antibacterial agents. Pioneered over 100 years ago, phage therapy nonetheless is currently experiencing a resurgence in interest, with growing numbers of clinical case studies being published. This renewed enthusiasm is due in large part to phage therapy holding promise for providing safe and effective cures for bacterial infections that traditional antibiotics acting alone have been unable to clear. This Essay introduces basic phage biology, provides an outline of the long history of phage therapy, highlights some advantages of using phages as antibacterial agents, and provides an overview of recent phage therapy clinical successes. Although phage therapy has clear clinical potential, it faces biological, regulatory, and economic challenges to its further implementation and more mainstream acceptance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandra Petrovic Fabijan
- Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia
- Faculty of Health and Medicine, School of Medicine, Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Jonathan Iredell
- Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia
- Faculty of Health and Medicine, School of Medicine, Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney Local Health District, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Katarzyna Danis-Wlodarczyk
- Department of Microbial Infection and Immunity, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Razieh Kebriaei
- P3 Research Laboratory, College of Pharmacy, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Stephen T. Abedon
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Mansfield, Ohio, United States of America
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Barrow P, Dujardin JC, Fasel N, Greenwood AD, Osterrieder K, Lomonossoff G, Fiori PL, Atterbury R, Rossi M, Lalle M. Viruses of protozoan parasites and viral therapy: Is the time now right? Virol J 2020; 17:142. [PMID: 32993724 PMCID: PMC7522927 DOI: 10.1186/s12985-020-01410-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2020] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Infections caused by protozoan parasites burden the world with huge costs in terms of human and animal health. Most parasitic diseases caused by protozoans are neglected, particularly those associated with poverty and tropical countries, but the paucity of drug treatments and vaccines combined with increasing problems of drug resistance are becoming major concerns for their control and eradication. In this climate, the discovery/repurposing of new drugs and increasing effort in vaccine development should be supplemented with an exploration of new alternative/synergic treatment strategies. Viruses, either native or engineered, have been employed successfully as highly effective and selective therapeutic approaches to treat cancer (oncolytic viruses) and antibiotic-resistant bacterial diseases (phage therapy). Increasing evidence is accumulating that many protozoan, but also helminth, parasites harbour a range of different classes of viruses that are mostly absent from humans. Although some of these viruses appear to have no effect on their parasite hosts, others either have a clear direct negative impact on the parasite or may, in fact, contribute to the virulence of parasites for humans. This review will focus mainly on the viruses identified in protozoan parasites that are of medical importance. Inspired and informed by the experience gained from the application of oncolytic virus- and phage-therapy, rationally-driven strategies to employ these viruses successfully against parasitic diseases will be presented and discussed in the light of the current knowledge of the virus biology and the complex interplay between the viruses, the parasite hosts and the human host. We also highlight knowledge gaps that should be addressed to advance the potential of virotherapy against parasitic diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Barrow
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE12 5RD, UK.
| | - Jean Claude Dujardin
- Molecular Parasitology Unit, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nationalestraat, 155, 2000, Antwerpen, Belgium
| | - Nicolas Fasel
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, Ch. des Boveresses 155, 1066, Epalinges, Switzerland
| | - Alex D Greenwood
- Department of Wildlife Diseases, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany.,Department of Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.,Institut für Virologie, Robert Von Ostertag-Haus - Zentrum Fuer Infektionsmedizin, Robert von Ostertag-Str. 7-13, 14163, Berlin, Germany
| | - Klaus Osterrieder
- Institut für Virologie, Robert Von Ostertag-Haus - Zentrum Fuer Infektionsmedizin, Robert von Ostertag-Str. 7-13, 14163, Berlin, Germany.,Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, 31 To Yuen Street, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - George Lomonossoff
- Department of Biological Chemistry, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7UH, UK
| | - Pier Luigi Fiori
- Dipartimento Di Scienze Biomedice, Universita Degli Studi Di Sassari, Sardinia, Italy
| | - Robert Atterbury
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE12 5RD, UK
| | - Matteo Rossi
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, Ch. des Boveresses 155, 1066, Epalinges, Switzerland
| | - Marco Lalle
- Unit of Foodborne and Neglected Parasitic Diseases, European Union Reference Laboratory for Parasites, Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore Di Sanità, viale Regina Elena 299, 00186, Rome, Italy.
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Abstract
1. There is huge emphasis in veterinary and agricultural science in understanding the basics of processes and exploiting them for benefits to the economy and human and animal welfare. It is always valuable to be able to step back from existing or favourite hypotheses and paradigms to look at an area of work or problem and see whether a different approach might be productive particularly by drawing parallels with other sometimes unrelated problems. 2. This approach has been used to explore (i) the use of live, attenuated Salmonella vaccines to generate a new form of competitive exclusion, (ii) gene expression technology for the design of improved inactivated vaccines (iii) use of cytokine therapy to reduce persistent carriage by Salmonella, (iv) using bacteriophages to reduce carcass contamination by food-borne pathogens and reduce carriage of antibiotic resistance plasmids. 3. The potential for extending virus therapy to parasite infections is also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Barrow
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham , Loughborough, Leicestershire , UK
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Mhlwatika Z, Aderibigbe BA. Application of Dendrimers for the Treatment of Infectious Diseases. Molecules 2018; 23:E2205. [PMID: 30200314 PMCID: PMC6225509 DOI: 10.3390/molecules23092205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2018] [Revised: 06/14/2018] [Accepted: 06/15/2018] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Dendrimers are drug delivery systems that are characterized by a three-dimensional, star-shaped, branched macromolecular network. They possess ideal properties such as low polydispersity index, biocompatibility and good water solubility. They are made up of the interior and the exterior layers. The exterior layer consists of functional groups that are useful for conjugation of drugs and targeting moieties. The interior layer exhibits improved drug encapsulation efficiency, reduced drug toxicity, and controlled release mechanisms. These unique properties make them useful for drug delivery. Dendrimers have attracted considerable attention as drug delivery system for the treatment of infectious diseases. The treatment of infectious diseases is hampered severely by drug resistance. Several properties of dendrimers such as their ability to overcome drug resistance, toxicity and control the release mechanism of the encapsulated drugs make them ideal systems for the treatment of infectious disease. The aim of this review is to discuss the potentials of dendrimers for the treatment of viral and parasitic infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zandile Mhlwatika
- Department of Chemistry, University of Fort Hare, Alice Campus, Eastern Cape 5700, South Africa.
| | - Blessing Atim Aderibigbe
- Department of Chemistry, University of Fort Hare, Alice Campus, Eastern Cape 5700, South Africa.
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Abedon ST, García P, Mullany P, Aminov R. Editorial: Phage Therapy: Past, Present and Future. Front Microbiol 2017. [PMID: 28663740 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.00981.] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Stephen T Abedon
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State UniversityMansfield, OH, United States
| | - Pilar García
- Spanish National Research CouncilVillaviciosa, Spain
| | - Peter Mullany
- Department of Microbial Diseases, Eastman Dental Institute, University College LondonLondon, United Kingdom
| | - Rustam Aminov
- School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of AberdeenAberdeen, United Kingdom
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Abedon ST, García P, Mullany P, Aminov R. Editorial: Phage Therapy: Past, Present and Future. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:981. [PMID: 28663740 PMCID: PMC5471325 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.00981] [Citation(s) in RCA: 122] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2017] [Accepted: 05/16/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Stephen T. Abedon
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State UniversityMansfield, OH, United States
| | - Pilar García
- Spanish National Research CouncilVillaviciosa, Spain
| | - Peter Mullany
- Department of Microbial Diseases, Eastman Dental Institute, University College LondonLondon, United Kingdom
| | - Rustam Aminov
- School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of AberdeenAberdeen, United Kingdom
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric C Keen
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, 1211 Dickinson Drive, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA.
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Scanlan PD, Stensvold CR. Blastocystis: getting to grips with our guileful guest. Trends Parasitol 2013; 29:523-9. [PMID: 24080063 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2013.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2013] [Revised: 08/30/2013] [Accepted: 08/30/2013] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Blastocystis, a common single-celled intestinal parasite of humans and animals, continues to puzzle clinical microbiologists, gastroenterologists, and general practitioners who are still unsure of the clinical significance of the organism. Here we consider some less well-addressed areas of Blastocystis research, which, facilitated by recent technological advances, could potentially turn out to be significant pathways to knowledge. First and foremost we discuss new trends in Blastocystis research, including the 'omics' perspectives, and then highlight some aspects of Blastocystis research in the context of host coevolution, its potential as a biomarker of intestinal functionality, and its relationship to other components of the human intestinal microbiota.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pauline D Scanlan
- Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, Biosciences Institute, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
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