Transcriptional Profile and Structural Conservation of SUMO-Specific Proteases in Schistosoma mansoni

An update on proteases and protease inhibitors from trematodes

Trematodes, a class of parasitic flatworms, are responsible for a variety of devastating diseases in humans and animals, with schistosomiasis and fascioliasis being prominent examples. Trematode proteolytic systems involved in the host-parasite interaction have emerged as key contributors to the success of trematodes in establishing and maintaining infections. This review concentrates on diverse proteases and protease inhibitors employed by trematodes and provides an update on recent advances in their molecular-level characterization, with a focus on function, structure, and therapeutic target potential.

The emerging roles of SUMOylation in pulmonary diseases

Small ubiquitin-like modifier mediated modification (SUMOylation) is a critical post-translational modification that has a broad spectrum of biological functions, including genome replication and repair, transcriptional regulation, protein stability, and cell cycle progression. Perturbation or deregulation of a SUMOylation and deSUMOylation status has emerged as a new pathophysiological feature of lung diseases. In this review, we highlighted the link between SUMO pathway and lung diseases, especially the sumoylated substrate such as C/EBPα in bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BDP), PPARγ in pneumonia, TFII-I in asthma, HDAC2 in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), KLF15 in hypoxic pulmonary hypertension (HPH), SMAD3 in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and YTHDF2 in cancer. By exploring the impact of SUMOylation in pulmonary diseases, we intend to shed light on its potential to inspire the development of innovative diagnostic and therapeutic strategies, holding promise for improving patient outcomes and overall respiratory health.

Up-regulation of SUMO E3 ligases during lung schistosomula and adult worm stages

Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) conjugation of proteins occurs through a concert action of enzymes using a similar ubiquitination mechanism. After a C-terminal peptide is cleaved from the SUMO precursor by a protease to reveal a di-glycine motif, SUMO is activated by an E1 enzyme (Aos1/Uba2) and conjugated to target proteins by the sole E2 enzyme (Ubc9) guided to the appropriate substrates by the SUMO E3 ligase. Previous reports from our group showed that Schistosoma mansoni has two paralogs of SUMO: one E2 conjugation Ubc9 and two SUMO-specific proteases (SENPs). The differential gene expression profile observed for SUMO pathway genes throughout the S. mansoni life cycle attests for the distinct patterns of SUMO conjugates observed during parasite development particularly during the cercariae to schistosomula transition. To continue this investigation, we here analysed the repertoire of SUMO E3 ligases and their expression profiles during cercariae/schistosomula transition. In silico analysis through S. mansoni databases showed two conserved SUMO E3 ligases: protein inhibitor of activated STAT (PIAS) and Ran-binding protein 2 (RanBP2). Furthermore, expression levels of the SUMO E3 ligases were measured by qRT-PCR using total RNA from cercariae, adult worms and mechanically transformed schistosomula. Our data showed an up-regulation of expression in lung schistosomula and adult worm stages. In conclusion, the differential expression of SmPIAS and SmRanBP2 during schistosomula development was similar to the expression levels of all genes related to SUMO conjugation, thereby suggesting that the control of protein activity, localisation or stability during cercariae to schistosomula transition is SUMO-dependent.