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Camicia F, Vaca HR, Guarnaschelli I, Koziol U, Mortensen OV, Fontana ACK. Molecular characterization of the serotonergic transporter from the cestode Echinococcus granulosus: pharmacology and potential role in the nervous system. Parasitol Res 2022; 121:1329-1343. [PMID: 35169884 PMCID: PMC9487190 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-022-07466-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 02/08/2022] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Echinococcus granulosus, the etiological agent of human cystic echinococcosis (formerly known as hydatid disease), represents a serious worldwide public health problem with limited treatment options. The essential role played by the neuromuscular system in parasite survival and the relevance of serotonin (5-HT) in parasite movement and development make the serotonergic system an attractive source of drug targets. In this study, we cloned and sequenced a cDNA coding for the serotonin transporter from E. granulosus (EgSERT). Bioinformatic analyses suggest that EgSERT has twelve transmembrane domains with highly conserved ligand and ionic binding sites but a less conserved allosteric site compared with the human orthologue (HsSERT). Modeling studies also suggest a good degree of conservation of the overall structure compared with HsSERT. Functional and pharmacological studies performed on the cloned EgSERT confirm that this protein is indeed a serotonin transporter. EgSERT is specific for 5-HT and does not transport other neurotransmitters. Typical monoamine transport inhibitors also displayed inhibitory activities towards EgSERT, but with lower affinity than for the human SERT (HsSERT), suggesting a high divergence of the cestode transporter compared with HsSERT. In situ hybridization studies performed in the larval protoscolex stage suggest that EgSERT is located in discrete regions that are compatible with the major ganglia of the serotonergic nervous system. The pharmacological properties, the amino acidic substitutions at important functional regions compared with the HsSERT, and the putative role of EgSERT in the nervous system suggest that it could be an important target for pharmacological intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federico Camicia
- Laboratorio de Toxinopatología, Centro de Patología Experimental y Aplicada, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Hugo R Vaca
- Departamento de Microbiología, Parasitología e Inmunología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), CONICET, Instituto de Investigaciones en Microbiología y Parasitología Médica (IMPaM), Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Ines Guarnaschelli
- Sección Biología Celular, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Uriel Koziol
- Sección Biología Celular, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Ole V Mortensen
- Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, 19102, USA
| | - Andreia C K Fontana
- Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, 19102, USA.
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Kreshchenko N, Terenina N, Ermakov A. Serotonin Signalling in Flatworms: An Immunocytochemical Localisation of 5-HT 7 Type of Serotonin Receptors in Opisthorchis felineus and Hymenolepis diminuta. Biomolecules 2021; 11:1212. [PMID: 34439878 PMCID: PMC8394519 DOI: 10.3390/biom11081212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2021] [Revised: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The study is dedicated to the investigation of serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) and 5-HT7 type serotonin receptor of localisation in larvae of two parasitic flatworms Opisthorchis felineus (Rivolta, 1884) Blanchard, 1895 and Hymenolepis diminuta Rudolphi, 1819, performed using the immunocytochemical method and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). Using whole mount preparations and specific antibodies, a microscopic analysis of the spatial distribution of 5-HT7-immunoreactivity(-IR) was revealed in worm tissue. In metacercariae of O. felineus 5-HT7-IR was observed in the main nerve cords and in the head commissure connecting the head ganglia. The presence of 5-HT7-IR was also found in several structures located on the oral sucker. 5-HT7-IR was evident in the round glandular cells scattered throughout the larva body. In cysticercoids of H. diminuta immunostaining to 5-HT7 was found in flame cells of the excretory system. Weak staining to 5-HT7 was observed along the longitudinal and transverse muscle fibres comprising the body wall and musculature of suckers, in thin longitudinal nerve cords and a connective commissure of the central nervous system. Available publications on serotonin action in flatworms and serotonin receptors identification were reviewed. Own results and the published data indicate that the muscular structures of flatworms are deeply supplied by 5-HT7-IR elements. It suggests that the 5-HT7 type receptor can mediate the serotonin action in the investigated species and is an important component of the flatworm motor control system. The study of the neurochemical basis of parasitic flatworms can play an important role in the solution of fundamental problems in early development of the nervous system and the evolution of neuronal signalling components.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia Kreshchenko
- Institute of Cell Biophysics of Russian Academy of Sciences, 142290 Pushchino, Russia
| | - Nadezhda Terenina
- Center of Parasitology A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of Russian Academy of Sciences, 119071 Moscow, Russia;
| | - Artem Ermakov
- Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics Russian Academy of Sciences, 142290 Pushchino, Russia;
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Nefedova D, Terenina N, Mochalova N, Poddubnaya L, Movsesyan S, Gordeev I, Kuchin A, Kreshchenko N. The neuromuscular system in flatworms: serotonin and FMRFamide immunoreactivities and musculature in Prodistomum alaskense (Digenea: Lepocreadiidae), an endemic fish parasite of the northwestern Pacific. CAN J ZOOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2020-0245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Using the immunocytochemical method and confocal scanning laser microscopy, we obtained pioneering data on the muscle system organization and presence and localization of biogenic amine serotonin and FMRFamide-related peptides in the nervous system of the trematode Prodistomum alaskense (Ward and Fillingham, 1934) Bray and Merrett 1998 (family Lepocreadiidae). This flatworm is an intestinal parasite of endemic representatives of the marine fauna of the northwestern Pacific Ocean — the prowfish (Zaprora silenus Jordan, 1896) and the lumpfish (Aptocyclus ventricosus (Pallas, 1769)). We provide data of scanning electron microscopy on the tegumental topography of P. alaskense. The body wall musculature of P. alaskense has three layers of muscle fibres — the outer circular, intermediate longitudinal, and inner diagonal. The muscle system elements are well developed in the attachment organs, digestive and reproductive systems, and in the excretory sphincter. Serotonin– and FMRFamide–immunopositive neurons and neurites are found in the head ganglia, circular commissure, longitudinal nerve cords, and in the transversal connective commissures. The innervation of the oral and ventral suckers, pharynx, and the reproductive system compartments by the serotonergic and FMRFamide–immunopositive neurites is revealed. The results discus connection with the published data on the presence and functional roles of the serotonin and FMRFamide-related peptides in Platyhelminthes.
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Affiliation(s)
- D.A. Nefedova
- Center of Parasitology, А.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky pr., 33, Moscow, Russia, 119071
| | - N.B. Terenina
- Center of Parasitology, А.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky pr., 33, Moscow, Russia, 119071
| | - N.V. Mochalova
- Center of Parasitology, А.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky pr., 33, Moscow, Russia, 119071
| | - L.G. Poddubnaya
- I.D. Papanin Institute for Biology of Inland Waters of Russian Academy of Sciences, Borok 119, Yaroslavl Province, Russia, 152742
| | - S.O. Movsesyan
- Center of Parasitology, А.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninsky pr., 33, Moscow, Russia, 119071
| | - I.I. Gordeev
- Russian Federal Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography, Verkhn. Krasnoselskaya Str. 17, Moscow, Russia, 107140
- Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskiye Gory 1, Moscow, Russia, 119234
| | - A.V. Kuchin
- Institute of Cell Biophysics of Russian Academy of Sciences, Institutskaya Str. 3, Pushchino, Moscow Region, Russia, 142290
| | - N.D. Kreshchenko
- Institute of Cell Biophysics of Russian Academy of Sciences, Institutskaya Str. 3, Pushchino, Moscow Region, Russia, 142290
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Preza M, Montagne J, Costábile A, Iriarte A, Castillo E, Koziol U. Analysis of classical neurotransmitter markers in tapeworms: Evidence for extensive loss of neurotransmitter pathways. Int J Parasitol 2018; 48:979-992. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2018.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2018] [Revised: 05/30/2018] [Accepted: 06/06/2018] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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Ribeiro P, Patocka N. Neurotransmitter transporters in schistosomes: Structure, function and prospects for drug discovery. Parasitol Int 2013; 62:629-38. [DOI: 10.1016/j.parint.2013.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2013] [Revised: 06/12/2013] [Accepted: 06/14/2013] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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Patocka N, Ribeiro P. Characterization of a serotonin transporter in the parasitic flatworm, Schistosoma mansoni: cloning, expression and functional analysis. Mol Biochem Parasitol 2007; 154:125-33. [PMID: 17582522 DOI: 10.1016/j.molbiopara.2007.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2007] [Revised: 03/14/2007] [Accepted: 03/19/2007] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The biogenic amine serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine: 5HT) is a widely distributed neuroactive substance of vertebrates and invertebrates. Among parasitic flatworms, in particularly the bloodfluke, Schistosoma mansoni, 5HT is an important modulator of neuromuscular function and metabolism. Previous work has shown that schistosomes take up 5HT from host blood via a carrier mediated mechanism. This transport is thought to contribute to the control of schistosome motility in the bloodstream and is essential for survival of the parasite. Here we provide the first molecular evidence for the existence of a 5HT transporter in S. mansoni. A cDNA showing high homology with plasma membrane serotonin transporters (SERT) from other species was cloned and characterized by heterologous expression in cultured HEK293 cells. Functional studies showed that the recombinant schistosome transporter (SmSERT) mediates specific and saturable [(3)H]-5HT transport with a K(t)=1.30+/-0.05 microM. The heterologously expressed protein was inhibited by classic SERT blockers (clomipramine, fluoxetine, citalopram) and the same drugs also inhibited [(3)H]-5HT uptake by intact schistosomula in culture, suggesting that SmSERT may be responsible for this transport. Conventional (end-point) and real-time quantitative RT-PCR analyses determined that SmSERT is expressed both in the free-living stage (cercaria) and parasitic forms of S. mansoni but the expression level is significantly higher in the parasites. These results suggest that SmSERT is upregulated following cercarial transformation, possibly to mediate the recruitment of exogenous 5HT from the host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas Patocka
- Institute of Parasitology, McGill University, Macdonald Campus, 21,111 Lakeshore Road, Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Quebec, Canada H9X 3V9
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Webb RA. Studies on platyhelminths: yesterday, today, and tomorrow. CAN J ZOOL 2004. [DOI: 10.1139/z04-001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
This introduction to the following collection of review articles discusses briefly why some researchers chose to study platyhelminths, especially parasites, and some of the important principles and concepts that emerge from these reviews. One observation is that these are challenging animals to work with. Although much has emerged of note, much remains to be done and this introduction highlights a few of these areas.
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