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Ferla M, Tasca T. The Role of Purinergic Signaling in Trichomonas vaginalis Infection. Curr Top Med Chem 2021; 21:181-192. [PMID: 32888270 DOI: 10.2174/1568026620999200904122212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2020] [Revised: 07/25/2020] [Accepted: 08/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Trichomoniasis, one of the most common non-viral sexually transmitted infections worldwide, is caused by the parasite Trichomonas vaginalis. The pathogen colonizes the human urogenital tract, and the infection is associated with complications such as adverse pregnancy outcomes, cervical cancer, and an increase in HIV transmission. The mechanisms of pathogenicity are multifactorial, and controlling immune responses is essential for infection maintenance. Extracellular purine nucleotides are released by cells in physiological and pathological conditions, and they are hydrolyzed by enzymes called ecto-nucleotidases. The cellular effects of nucleotides and nucleosides occur via binding to purinoceptors, or through the uptake by nucleoside transporters. Altogether, enzymes, receptors and transporters constitute the purinergic signaling, a cellular network that regulates several effects in practically all systems including mammals, helminths, protozoa, bacteria, and fungi. In this context, this review updates the data on purinergic signaling involved in T. vaginalis biology and interaction with host cells, focusing on the characterization of ecto-nucleotidases and on purine salvage pathways. The implications of the final products, the nucleosides adenosine and guanosine, for human neutrophil response and vaginal epithelial cell damage reveal the purinergic signaling as a potential new mechanism for alternative drug targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Micheli Ferla
- Research Team on Trichomonas, Pharmaceutical Sciences Graduation Program, Faculty of Pharmacy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Tiana Tasca
- Research Team on Trichomonas, Pharmaceutical Sciences Graduation Program, Faculty of Pharmacy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
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2
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Trichomonas vaginalis NTPDase inhibited by lycorine modulates the parasite-neutrophil interaction. Parasitol Res 2020; 119:2587-2595. [PMID: 32524267 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-020-06739-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2020] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Lycorine is an Amaryllidaceae alkaloid that presents anti-Trichomonas vaginalis activity. T. vaginalis causes trichomoniasis, the most common non-viral sexually transmitted infection. The modulation of T. vaginalis purinergic signaling through the ectonucleotidases, nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase (NTPDase), and ecto-5'-nucleotidase represents new targets for combating the parasite. With this knowledge, the aim of this study was to investigate whether NTPDase and ecto-5'-nucleotidase inhibition by lycorine could lead to extracellular ATP accumulation. Moreover, the lycorine effect on the reactive oxygen species (ROS) production by neutrophils and parasites was evaluated as well as the alkaloid toxicity. The metabolism of purines was assessed by HPLC. ROS production was measured by flow cytometry. Cytotoxicity against epithelial vaginal cells and fibroblasts was tested, as well as the hemolytic effect of lycorine and its in vivo toxicity in Galleria mellonella larvae. Our findings showed that lycorine caused ATP accumulation due to NTPDase inhibition. The alkaloid did not affect the ROS production by T. vaginalis; however, it increased ROS levels in neutrophils incubated with lycorine-treated trophozoites. Lycorine was cytotoxic against vaginal epithelial cells and fibroblasts; conversely, it was not hemolytic neither exhibited toxicity against the in vivo model of G. mellonella larvae. Overall, besides having anti-T. vaginalis activity, lycorine modulates ectonucleotidases and stimulates neutrophils to secrete ROS. This mechanism of action exerted by the alkaloid could enhance the susceptibility of T. vaginalis to host immune cell, contributing to protozoan clearance.
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Trichomonas vaginalis Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor Mediates Parasite Survival during Nutrient Stress. mBio 2018; 9:mBio.00910-18. [PMID: 29946046 PMCID: PMC6020296 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.00910-18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Trichomonas vaginalis is responsible for the most prevalent non-viral sexually transmitted disease worldwide, and yet the mechanisms used by this parasite to establish and maintain infection are poorly understood. We previously identified a T. vaginalis homologue (TvMIF) of a human cytokine, human macrophage migration inhibitory factor (huMIF). TvMIF mimics huMIF’s role in increasing cell growth and inhibiting apoptosis in human host cells. To interrogate a role of TvMIF in parasite survival during infection, we asked whether overexpression of TvMIF (TvMIF-OE) confers an advantage to the parasite under nutrient stress conditions by comparing the survival of TvMIF-OE parasites to that of empty vector (EV) parasites. We found that under conditions of serum starvation, overexpression of TvMIF resulted in increased parasite survival. Serum-starved parasites secrete 2.5-fold more intrinsic TvMIF than unstarved parasites, stimulating autocrine and paracrine signaling. Similarly, we observed that addition of recombinant TvMIF increased the survival of the parasites in the absence of serum. Recombinant huMIF likewise increased the parasite survival in the absence of serum, indicating that the parasite may use this host survival factor to resist its own death. Moreover, TvMIF-OE parasites were found to undergo significantly less apoptosis and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation under conditions of serum starvation, consistent with increased survival being the result of blocking ROS-induced apoptosis. These studies demonstrated that a parasitic MIF enhances survival under adverse conditions and defined TvMIF and huMIF as conserved survival factors that exhibit cross talk in host-pathogen interactions. Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a conserved protein found in most eukaryotes which has been well characterized in mammals but poorly studied in other eukaryotes. The limited analyses of MIF proteins found in unicellular eukaryotes have focused exclusively on the effect of parasitic MIF on the mammalian host. This was the first study to assess the function of a parasite MIF in parasite biology. We demonstrate that the Trichomonas vaginalis MIF functions to suppress cell death induced by apoptosis, thereby enhancing parasite survival under adverse conditions. Our research reveals a conserved survival mechanism, shared by a parasite and its host, and indicates a role for a conserved protein in mediating cross talk in host-pathogen interactions.
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Menezes CB, Frasson AP, Meirelles LC, Tasca T. Adenosine, but not guanosine, protects vaginal epithelial cells from Trichomonas vaginalis cytotoxicity. Microbes Infect 2016; 19:122-131. [PMID: 27871906 DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2016.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2015] [Revised: 11/10/2016] [Accepted: 11/13/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Trichomonas vaginalis causes the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease worldwide. The cytoadherence and cytotoxicity upon the vaginal epithelial cells are crucial for the infection. Extracellular nucleotides are released during cell damage and, along with their nucleosides, can activate purinoceptors. The opposing effects of nucleotides versus nucleosides are regulated by ectonucleotidases. Herein we evaluated the hemolysis and cytolysis induced by T. vaginalis, as well as the extracellular nucleotide hydrolysis along with the effects mediated by nucleotides and nucleosides on cytotoxicity. In addition, the gene expression of purinoceptors in host cells was determined. The hemolysis and cytolysis exerted by all T. vaginalis isolates presented positive Pearson correlation. All T. vaginalis isolates were able to hydrolyze nucleotides, showing higher NTPDase than ecto-5'-nucleotidase activity. The most cytotoxic isolate, TV-LACM6, hydrolyzes ATP, GTP with more efficiency than AMP and GMP. The vaginal epithelial cell line (HMVII) expressed the genes for all subtypes of P1, P2X and P2Y receptors. Finally, when nucleotides and nucleosides were tested, the cytotoxic effect elicited by TV-LACM6 was increased with nucleotides. In contrast, the cytotoxicity was reversed by adenosine in presence of EHNA, but not by guanosine, contributing to the understanding of the purinergic signaling role on T. vaginalis cytotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camila Braz Menezes
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Amanda Piccoli Frasson
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Domo Salute Consultoria Regulatória Ltda, Rua Cristóvão Colombo 2948/411, CEP 90560-002, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Lucia Collares Meirelles
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Tiana Tasca
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
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Menezes CB, Tasca T. Trichomoniasis immunity and the involvement of the purinergic signaling. Biomed J 2016; 39:234-243. [PMID: 27793265 PMCID: PMC6138788 DOI: 10.1016/j.bj.2016.06.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2016] [Revised: 06/27/2016] [Accepted: 06/30/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Innate and adaptive immunity play a significant role in trichomoniasis, the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease worldwide. In the urogenital tract, innate immunity is accomplished by a defense physical barrier constituted by epithelial cells, mucus, and acidic pH. During infection, immune cells, antimicrobial peptides, cytokines, chemokines, and adaptive immunity evolve in the reproductive tract, and a proinflammatory response is generated to eliminate the invading extracellular pathogen Trichomonas vaginalis. However, the parasite has developed complex evolutionary mechanisms to evade the host immune response through cysteine proteases, phenotypic variation, and molecular mimicry. The purinergic system constitutes a signaling cellular net where nucleotides and nucleosides, enzymes, purinoceptors and transporters are involved in almost all cells and tissues signaling pathways, especially in central and autonomic nervous systems, endocrine, respiratory, cardiac, reproductive, and immune systems, during physiological as well as pathological processes. The involvement of the purinergic system in T. vaginalis biology and infection has been demonstrated and this review highlights the participation of this signaling pathway in the parasite immune evasion strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camila Braz Menezes
- Parasitology Research Laboratory, Pharmacy Faculty, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Tiana Tasca
- Parasitology Research Laboratory, Pharmacy Faculty, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
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Menezes CB, Durgante J, de Oliveira RR, Dos Santos VHJM, Rodrigues LF, Garcia SC, Dos Santos O, Tasca T. Trichomonas vaginalis NTPDase and ecto-5'-nucleotidase hydrolyze guanine nucleotides and increase extracellular guanosine levels under serum restriction. Mol Biochem Parasitol 2016; 207:10-8. [PMID: 27150347 DOI: 10.1016/j.molbiopara.2016.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2015] [Revised: 04/14/2016] [Accepted: 04/29/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Trichomonas vaginalis is the aethiologic agent of trichomoniasis, the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease in the world. The purinergic signaling pathway is mediated by extracellular nucleotides and nucleosides that are involved in many biological effects as neurotransmission, immunomodulation and inflammation. Extracellular nucleotides can be hydrolyzed by a family of enzymes known as ectonucleotidases including the ecto-nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolases (E-NTPDases) family which hydrolyses nucleosides triphosphate and diphosphate as preferential substrates and ecto-5'-nucleotidase which catalyzes the conversion of monophosphates into nucleosides. In T. vaginalis the E-NTPDase and ecto-5'-nucleotidase activities upon adenine nucleotides have already been characterized in intact trophozoites but little is known concerning guanine nucleotides and nucleoside. These enzymes may exert a crucial role on nucleoside generation, providing the purine sources for the synthesis de novo of these essential nutrients, sustaining parasite growth and survival. In this study, we investigated the hydrolysis profile of guanine-related nucleotides and nucleoside in intact trophozoites from long-term-grown and fresh clinical isolates of T. vaginalis. Knowing that guanine nucleotides are also substrates for T. vaginalis ectoenzymes, we evaluated the profile of nucleotides consumption and guanosine uptake in trophozoites submitted to a serum limitation condition. Results show that guanine nucleotides (GTP, GDP, GMP) were substrates for T. vaginalis ectonucleotidases, with expected kinetic parameters for this enzyme family. Different T. vaginalis isolates (two from the ATCC and nine fresh clinical isolates) presented a heterogeneous hydrolysis profile. The serum culture condition increased E-NTPDase and ecto-5'-nucleotidase activities with high consumption of extracellular GTP generating enhanced GDP, GMP and guanosine levels as demonstrated by HPLC, with final accumulation of the nucleoside. The transcript levels of the five TvNTPDases gene sequences were analyzed by qRT-PCR and the highest gene expressions were found for TvNTPDase 2 and 4. The extracellular guanosine uptake was observed as (13C)GTP nucleotide into parasite DNA and it was lower than that observed for adenosine, labeled as (13C)ATP. These findings indicate the T. vaginalis preference for adenosine uptake and the accumulation of guanosine in the extracellular milieu, corroborating with HPLC data. Our data demonstrate, for the first time, the cascade of guanine nucleotides in T. vaginalis and open possibilities on the study of guanine-related purines other than the classical intracellular activity of G proteins for signal transduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camila Braz Menezes
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Juliano Durgante
- Laboratório de Toxicologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Rafael Rodrigues de Oliveira
- Instituto do Petróleo e dos Recursos Naturais, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 6681, 90619-900 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Victor Hugo Jacks Mendes Dos Santos
- Instituto do Petróleo e dos Recursos Naturais, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 6681, 90619-900 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Luiz Frederico Rodrigues
- Instituto do Petróleo e dos Recursos Naturais, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 6681, 90619-900 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Solange Cristina Garcia
- Laboratório de Toxicologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Odelta Dos Santos
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Tiana Tasca
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
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Magalhães L, de Oliveira AHC, de Souza Vasconcellos R, Mariotini-Moura C, de Cássia Firmino R, Fietto JLR, Cardoso CL. Label-free assay based on immobilized capillary enzyme reactor of Leishmania infantum nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase (LicNTPDase-2-ICER-LC/UV). J Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci 2015; 1008:98-107. [PMID: 26638034 DOI: 10.1016/j.jchromb.2015.11.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2015] [Revised: 11/11/2015] [Accepted: 11/17/2015] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase (NTPDase) is an enzyme belonging to the apyrase family that participates in the hydrolysis of the nucleosides di- and triphosphate to the corresponding nucleoside monophosphate. This enzyme underlies the virulence of parasites such as Leishmania. Recently, an NTPDase from Leishmania infantum (LicNTPDase-2) was cloned and expressed and has been considered as a new drug target for the treatment of leishmaniasis. With the intent of developing label-free online screening methodologies, LicNTPDase-2 was covalently immobilized onto a fused silica capillary tube in the present study to create an immobilized capillary enzyme reactor (ICER) based on LicNTPDase-2 (LicNTPDase-2-ICER). To perform the activity assays, a multidimensional chromatographic method was developed employing the LicNTPDase-2-ICER in the first dimension, and an analytical Ascentis C8 column was used in the second dimension to provide analytical separation of the substrates and products. The validated LicNTPDase-2-ICER method provided the following kinetic parameters of the immobilized enzyme: KM of 2.2 and 1.8mmolL(-1) for the ADP and ATP substrates, respectively. Suramin (1mmolL(-1)) was also shown to inhibit 32.9% of the enzymatic activity. The developed method is applicable to kinetic studies and enables the recognition of the ligands. Furthermore, a comparison of the values of LicNTPDase-2-ICER with those obtained with an LC method using free enzyme in solution showed that LicNTPDase-2-ICER-LC/UV was an accurate and reproducible method that enabled automated measurements for the rapid screening of ligands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luana Magalhães
- Departamento de Química-Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto-Universidade de São Paulo, 14040-901 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | | | - Raphael de Souza Vasconcellos
- Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular-Universidade Federal de Viçosa, 36570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Biotecnologia Estrutural e Química Medicinal em Doenças Infecciosas (INBEQMeDI), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Christiane Mariotini-Moura
- Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular-Universidade Federal de Viçosa, 36570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Biotecnologia Estrutural e Química Medicinal em Doenças Infecciosas (INBEQMeDI), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Rafaela de Cássia Firmino
- Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular-Universidade Federal de Viçosa, 36570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil
| | - Juliana Lopes Rangel Fietto
- Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular-Universidade Federal de Viçosa, 36570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Biotecnologia Estrutural e Química Medicinal em Doenças Infecciosas (INBEQMeDI), São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Carmen Lúcia Cardoso
- Departamento de Química-Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto-Universidade de São Paulo, 14040-901 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
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Vieira PDB, Silva NLF, Kist LW, Oliveira GMTD, Bogo MR, Carli GAD, Macedo AJ, Tasca T. Iron from haemoglobin and haemin modulates nucleotide hydrolysis in Trichomonas vaginalis. Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 2015; 110:201-8. [PMID: 25946243 PMCID: PMC4489450 DOI: 10.1590/0074-02760140320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2014] [Accepted: 01/26/2015] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Extracellular ATP may act as a danger signalling molecule, inducing inflammation and
immune responses in infection sites. The ectonucleotidases NTPDase and
ecto-5’-nucleotidase are enzymes that modulate extracellular nucleotide levels; these
enzymes have been previously characterised in Trichomonas vaginalis.
Iron plays an important role in the complex trichomonal pathogenesis. Herein, the
effects of iron on growth, nucleotide hydrolysis and NTPDase gene expression in
T. vaginalis isolates from female and male patients were
evaluated. Iron from different sources sustained T. vaginalis
growth. Importantly, iron from haemoglobin (HB) and haemin (HM) enhanced NTPDase
activity in isolates from female patients and conversely reduced the enzyme activity
in isolates from male patients. Iron treatments could not alter the NTPDase
transcript levels in T. vaginalis. Furthermore, our results reveal a
distinct ATP, ADP and AMP hydrolysis profile between isolates from female and male
patients influenced by iron from HB and HM. Our data indicate the participation of
NTPDase and ecto-5’-nucleotidase in the establishment of trichomonas infection
through ATP degradation and adenosine production influenced by iron.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Luiza Wilges Kist
- Laboratório de Biologia Genômica e Molecular, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | | | - Maurício Reis Bogo
- Laboratório de Biologia Genômica e Molecular, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Geraldo Atillio de Carli
- Instituto de Geriatria e Gerontologia, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Alexandre José Macedo
- Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Tiana Tasca
- Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
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Frasson AP, Dos Santos O, Meirelles LC, Macedo AJ, Tasca T. Five putative nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase genes are expressed in Trichomonas vaginalis. FEMS Microbiol Lett 2015; 363:fnv221. [PMID: 26590960 DOI: 10.1093/femsle/fnv221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/13/2015] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Trichomonas vaginalis is a protozoan that parasitizes the human urogenital tract causing trichomoniasis, the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease. The parasite has unique genomic characteristics such as a large genome size and expanded gene families. Ectonucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase (E-NTPDase) is an enzyme responsible for hydrolyzing nucleoside tri- and diphosphates and has already been biochemically characterized in T. vaginalis. Considering the important role of this enzyme in the production of extracellular adenosine for parasite uptake, we evaluated the gene expression of five putative NTPDases in T. vaginalis. We showed that all five putative TvNTPDase genes (TvNTPDase1-5) were expressed by both fresh clinical and long-term grown isolates. The amino acid alignment predicted the presence of the five crucial apyrase conserved regions, transmembrane domains, signal peptides, phosphorylation and catalytic sites. Moreover, a phylogenetic analysis showed that TvNTPDase sequences make up a clade with NTPDases intracellularly located. Biochemical NTPDase activity (ATP and ADP hydrolysis) is responsive to the serum-restrictive conditions and the gene expression of TvNTPDases was mostly increased, mainly TvNTPDase2 and TvNTPDase4, although there was not a clear pattern of expression among them. In summary, the present report demonstrates the gene expression patterns of predicted NTPDases in T. vaginalis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Piccoli Frasson
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Odelta Dos Santos
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Lúcia Collares Meirelles
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Alexandre José Macedo
- Laboratório de Diversidade Microbiana, Faculdade de Farmácia e Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Tiana Tasca
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 2752, 90610-000, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
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Primon-Barros M, Rigo GV, Frasson AP, Santos OD, Smiderle L, Almeida S, Macedo AJ, Tasca T. Modulatory effect of iron chelators on adenosine deaminase activity and gene expression in Trichomonas vaginalis. Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 2015; 110:877-83. [PMID: 26517498 PMCID: PMC4660616 DOI: 10.1590/0074-02760150076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2015] [Accepted: 08/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Trichomonas vaginalis is a flagellate protozoan that parasitises the
urogenital human tract and causes trichomoniasis. During the infection, the
acquisition of nutrients, such as iron and purine and pyrimidine nucleosides, is
essential for the survival of the parasite. The enzymes for purinergic signalling,
including adenosine deaminase (ADA), which degrades adenosine to inosine, have been
characterised in T. vaginalis. In the evaluation of the ADA profile
in different T. vaginalis isolates treated with different iron
sources or with limited iron availability, a decrease in activity and an increase in
ADA gene expression after iron limitation by 2,2-bipyridyl and ferrozine chelators
were observed. This supported the hypothesis that iron can modulate the activity of
the enzymes involved in purinergic signalling. Under bovine serum limitation
conditions, no significant differences were observed. The results obtained in this
study allow for the assessment of important aspects of ADA and contribute to a better
understanding of the purinergic system in T. vaginalis and the role
of iron in establishing infection and parasite survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muriel Primon-Barros
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Graziela Vargas Rigo
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Amanda Piccoli Frasson
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Odelta dos Santos
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Lisiane Smiderle
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Silvana Almeida
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular, Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Alexandre José Macedo
- Laboratório de Tecnologia Bioquímica, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
| | - Tiana Tasca
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Parasitologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil
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dos Santos O, de Vargas Rigo G, Frasson AP, Macedo AJ, Tasca T. Optimal Reference Genes for Gene Expression Normalization in Trichomonas vaginalis. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0138331. [PMID: 26393928 PMCID: PMC4579074 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0138331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2015] [Accepted: 08/28/2015] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Trichomonas vaginalis is the etiologic agent of trichomonosis, the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease worldwide. This infection is associated with several health consequences, including cervical and prostate cancers and HIV acquisition. Gene expression analysis has been facilitated because of available genome sequences and large-scale transcriptomes in T. vaginalis, particularly using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), one of the most used methods for molecular studies. Reference genes for normalization are crucial to ensure the accuracy of this method. However, to the best of our knowledge, a systematic validation of reference genes has not been performed for T. vaginalis. In this study, the transcripts of nine candidate reference genes were quantified using qRT-PCR under different cultivation conditions, and the stability of these genes was compared using the geNorm and NormFinder algorithms. The most stable reference genes were α-tubulin, actin and DNATopII, and, conversely, the widely used T. vaginalis reference genes GAPDH and β-tubulin were less stable. The PFOR gene was used to validate the reliability of the use of these candidate reference genes. As expected, the PFOR gene was upregulated when the trophozoites were cultivated with ferrous ammonium sulfate when the DNATopII, α-tubulin and actin genes were used as normalizing gene. By contrast, the PFOR gene was downregulated when the GAPDH gene was used as an internal control, leading to misinterpretation of the data. These results provide an important starting point for reference gene selection and gene expression analysis with qRT-PCR studies of T. vaginalis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Odelta dos Santos
- Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | | | - Amanda Piccoli Frasson
- Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Alexandre José Macedo
- Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
- Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | - Tiana Tasca
- Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
- * E-mail:
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Silva-Gomes NL, Ennes-Vidal V, Carolo JCF, Batista MM, Soeiro MN, Menna-Barreto R, Moreira OC. Nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase1 (TcNTPDase-1) gene expression is increased due to heat shock and in infective forms of Trypanosoma cruzi. Parasit Vectors 2014; 7:463. [PMID: 25287580 PMCID: PMC4210531 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-014-0463-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2014] [Accepted: 09/27/2014] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Ecto-Nucleoside Triphosphate Diphosphohydrolases (Ecto-NTPDases) are enzymes that hydrolyze tri- and/or di-phosphate nucleotides. Evidences point to their participation in Trypanosoma cruzi virulence and infectivity. In this work, we evaluate TcNTPDase-1 gene expression in comparison with ecto-NTPDase activity, in order to study the role of TcNTPDase-1 in parasite virulence, infectivity and adaptation to heat shock. Findings Comparison between distinct T. cruzi isolates (Y, 3663 and 4167 strains, and Dm28c, LL014 and CL-14 clones) showed that TcNTPDase-1 expression was 7.2 ± 1.5 times higher in the Dm28c than the CL-14 avirulent clone. A remarkable expression increase was also observed in the trypomastigote and amastigote forms (22.5 ± 5.6 and 16.3 ± 3.8 times higher than epimastigotes, respectively), indicating that TcNTPDase-1 is overexpressed in T. cruzi infective forms. Moreover, heat shock and long-term cultivation also induced a significant increment on TcNTPDase-1 expression. Conclusions Our results suggest that TcNTPDase-1 plays an important role on T. cruzi infectivity and adaptation to stress conditions, such as long-term cultivation and heat shock. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-014-0463-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natália Lins Silva-Gomes
- Laboratorio de Biologia Molecular e Doenças Endêmicas, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/ FIOCRUZ, Av. Brasil, 4365. Pavilhão Leônidas Deane, sala 209. Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Vitor Ennes-Vidal
- Laboratorio de Biologia Molecular e Doenças Endêmicas, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/ FIOCRUZ, Av. Brasil, 4365. Pavilhão Leônidas Deane, sala 209. Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Julliane Castro Ferreira Carolo
- Laboratorio de Biologia Molecular e Doenças Endêmicas, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/ FIOCRUZ, Av. Brasil, 4365. Pavilhão Leônidas Deane, sala 209. Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Marcos Meuser Batista
- Laboratório de Biologia Celular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/ FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Maria Nazaré Soeiro
- Laboratório de Biologia Celular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/ FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Rubem Menna-Barreto
- Laboratório de Biologia Celular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/ FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Otacilio Cruz Moreira
- Laboratorio de Biologia Molecular e Doenças Endêmicas, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz/ FIOCRUZ, Av. Brasil, 4365. Pavilhão Leônidas Deane, sala 209. Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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