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Vatankhah M, Panahizadeh R, Safari A, Ziyabakhsh A, Mohammadi-Ghalehbin B, Soozangar N, Jeddi F. The role of Nrf2 signaling in parasitic diseases and its therapeutic potential. Heliyon 2024; 10:e32459. [PMID: 38988513 PMCID: PMC11233909 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e32459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 05/24/2024] [Accepted: 06/04/2024] [Indexed: 07/12/2024] Open
Abstract
In response to invading parasites, one of the principal arms of innate immunity is oxidative stress, caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS). However, oxidative stresses play dual functions in the disease, whereby free radicals promote pathogen removal, but they can also trigger inflammation, resulting in tissue injuries. A growing body of evidence has strongly supported the notion that nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF) signaling is one of the main antioxidant pathways to combat this oxidative burst against parasites. Given the important role of NRF2 in oxidative stress, in this review, we investigate the activation mechanism of the NRF2 antioxidant pathway in different parasitic diseases, such as malaria, leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, toxoplasmosis, schistosomiasis, entamoebiasis, and trichinosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammadamin Vatankhah
- Zoonoses Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
- Students Research Committee, School of Medicine, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
| | - Reza Panahizadeh
- Zoonoses Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
- Students Research Committee, School of Medicine, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
| | - Ali Safari
- Zoonoses Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
| | - Alireza Ziyabakhsh
- Zoonoses Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
| | | | - Narges Soozangar
- Zoonoses Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
| | - Farhad Jeddi
- Department of Genetics and Pathology, School of Medicine, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
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Yu Z, Jiang T, Xu F, Zhang J, Hu Y, Cao J. Inhibiting Liver Autophagy and Promoting Hepatocyte Apoptosis by Schistosoma Japonicum Infection. Trop Med Infect Dis 2024; 9:42. [PMID: 38393131 PMCID: PMC10892706 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed9020042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2024] [Revised: 01/28/2024] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
We established a mouse model of Schistosoma japonicum infection in order to study the effects of the infection on hepatocyte autophagy and apoptosis. We also stimulated HepG2 cells with soluble egg antigens (SEA) in vitro. At two, four, and six weeks post-infection, quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot (WB) were used to detect liver expression levels of autophagy and apoptosis-related proteins. HepG2 cells were treated with different concentrations of SEA. The changes in the levels of autophagy-related proteins and HepG2 cell apoptosis were detected. The Lc3b, Beclin1, Atg7, and Atg12 mRNA levels were significantly lower at four and six weeks after infection than those in the uninfected group. At four and six weeks following infection, the levels of Beclin1, LC3BII/I, Atg7, and p62 proteins were considerably lower than those in the uninfected group. The protein levels of pro-apoptotic Bax and cleaved caspase 3 and fibrosis-related proteins α-SMA and collagen 3 in the liver post-infection were significantly higher than those in uninfected mice. HepG2 cells stimulated with SEA showed decreased levels of Beclin1, p62, and Atg7 proteins and significantly increased apoptosis rates. The findings demonstrated that following infection with S. japonicum, mice's liver fibrosis worsened, hepatic autophagy was suppressed, and hepatocyte apoptosis was encouraged.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhihao Yu
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, Shanghai 200025, China; (Z.Y.); (T.J.); (F.X.); (J.Z.)
- National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research), Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Centre for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
| | - Tingting Jiang
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, Shanghai 200025, China; (Z.Y.); (T.J.); (F.X.); (J.Z.)
- National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research), Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Centre for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
| | - Fangfang Xu
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, Shanghai 200025, China; (Z.Y.); (T.J.); (F.X.); (J.Z.)
- National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research), Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Centre for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
| | - Jing Zhang
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, Shanghai 200025, China; (Z.Y.); (T.J.); (F.X.); (J.Z.)
- National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research), Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Centre for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
| | - Yuan Hu
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, Shanghai 200025, China; (Z.Y.); (T.J.); (F.X.); (J.Z.)
- National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research), Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Centre for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
| | - Jianping Cao
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China, Shanghai 200025, China; (Z.Y.); (T.J.); (F.X.); (J.Z.)
- National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research), Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
- World Health Organization Centre for Tropical Diseases, Shanghai 200025, China
- The School of Global Health, Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200025, China
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Sharaf-El-Deen S, Soliman S, Brakat R. Evaluation of the antiparasitic and antifibrotic effects of gallic acid on experimental hepatic schistosomiasis mansoni. J Helminthol 2024; 98:e3. [PMID: 38167243 DOI: 10.1017/s0022149x23000937] [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: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
Schistosomiasis afflicts approximately 120 million individuals globally. The hepatic pathology that occurs due to egg-induced granuloma and fibrosis is commonly attributed to this condition. However, there is currently no efficacious treatment available for either of these conditions.Our study aimed to investigate the potential antifibrotic and antiparasitic properties of different doses of gallic acid (GA) in experimental schistosomiasis mansoni. In addition, we investigated the outcomes of co-administering it with the standard anti-schistosomiasis treatment, praziquantel (PZQ).In experiment I, Schistosoma mansoni-infected mice were administered GA at doses of 10, 20, or 40 mg/kg. Their effectiveness was evaluated through parasitological (worm and egg loads, granuloma number and diameter), pathological (fibrosis percentage and H-score of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs)), and functional (liver enzymes) tests. In experiment II, we investigated the optimal dosage that yielded the best outcomes. This dosage was administered in conjunction with PZQ and was evaluated regarding the parasitological, pathological, functional, and immunological (fibrosis-regulating cytokines) activities.Our findings indicate that the administration of 40 mg/kg GA exhibited the highest level of effectiveness in experiment I. In experiment II, it exhibited lower antiparasitic efficacy in comparison to PZQ. However, it surpassed PZQ in other tests. It showed enhanced outcomes when combined with PZQ.In conclusion, our findings reveal that GA only slightly increased the antischistosomal activity of PZQ. However, it was linked to decreased fibrosis, particularly when administrated with PZQ. Our pilot study identifies GA as a natural antifibrotic agent, which could be administered with PZQ to mitigate the development of fibrosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Sharaf-El-Deen
- Parasitology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebin-el-kom, Menoufia, Egypt
| | - S Soliman
- Public Health and Community Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebin-el-kom, Menoufia, Egypt
| | - R Brakat
- Parasitology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebin-el-kom, Menoufia, Egypt
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Xie S, Zhang Y, Li J, Zhou J, Li J, Zhang P, Liu Y, Luo Y, Ming Y. IgG persistence showed weak clinical aspects in chronic schistosomiasis patients. Sci Rep 2023; 13:13222. [PMID: 37580417 PMCID: PMC10425409 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-40082-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/04/2023] [Indexed: 08/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Schistosomiasis is a chronic parasitic disease, which affects the quality of daily life of patients and imposes a huge burden on society. Hepatic fibrosis in response to continuous insult of eggs to the liver is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. However, the mechanisms of hepatic fibrosis in schistosomiasis are largely undefined. The purpose of our study is to detect the indicator to hepatic fibrosis in schistosomiasis. A total of 488 patients with chronic schistosomiasis japonica were enrolled in our study. The patients were divided into two groups according to liver ultrasound examination, which could indicate liver fibrosis of schistosomiasis with unique reticular changes. Logistic regression analysis showed that globulin, albumin/globulin, GGT levels and anti-Schistosoma IgG were independently associated with liver fibrosis in patients with schistosomiasis and IgG was the largest association of liver fibrosis (OR 2.039, 95% CI 1.293-3.213). We further compared IgG+ patients with IgG- patients. IgG+ patients (ALT 25 U/L, GGT 31 U/L) slightly higher than IgG- patients (ALT 22 U/L, GGT 26 U/L) in ALT and GGT. However, the fibrosis of liver in IgG+ patients (Grade II(19.7%), Grade III(7.3%)) were more severe than that in IgG- patients(Grade II(12.5%), Grade III(2.9%)) according to the grade of liver ultrasonography. Our results showed anti-Schistosoma IgG was independently associated with liver fibrosis in patients with chronic schistosomiasis japonica and patients with persistent anti-Schistosoma IgG might have more liver fibrosis than negative patients despite no obvious clinical signs or symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shudong Xie
- Transplantation Center, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, No. 138 Tongzipo Road, Changsha, 410013, Hunan, People's Republic of China
- Engineering and Technology Research Center for Transplantation Medicine of National Health Comission, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Yu Zhang
- Transplantation Center, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, No. 138 Tongzipo Road, Changsha, 410013, Hunan, People's Republic of China
- Engineering and Technology Research Center for Transplantation Medicine of National Health Comission, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Junhui Li
- Transplantation Center, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, No. 138 Tongzipo Road, Changsha, 410013, Hunan, People's Republic of China
- Engineering and Technology Research Center for Transplantation Medicine of National Health Comission, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Jie Zhou
- Hunan Institute of Schistosomiasis Control, Yueyang, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Jun Li
- Hunan Institute of Schistosomiasis Control, Yueyang, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Pengpeng Zhang
- Transplantation Center, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, No. 138 Tongzipo Road, Changsha, 410013, Hunan, People's Republic of China
- Engineering and Technology Research Center for Transplantation Medicine of National Health Comission, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Yang Liu
- Transplantation Center, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, No. 138 Tongzipo Road, Changsha, 410013, Hunan, People's Republic of China
- Engineering and Technology Research Center for Transplantation Medicine of National Health Comission, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Yulin Luo
- Transplantation Center, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, No. 138 Tongzipo Road, Changsha, 410013, Hunan, People's Republic of China
- Engineering and Technology Research Center for Transplantation Medicine of National Health Comission, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Yingzi Ming
- Transplantation Center, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, No. 138 Tongzipo Road, Changsha, 410013, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
- Engineering and Technology Research Center for Transplantation Medicine of National Health Comission, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
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Cao S, Wang D, Wu Y, Zhang J, Pu L, Luo X, Zhang X, Sun X, Zheng Y, Wang S, Guo X. mmu-miRNA-342-3p promotes hepatic stellate cell activation and hepatic fibrosis induced by Echinococcus multilocularis infection via targeting Zbtb7a. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2023; 17:e0011520. [PMID: 37490505 PMCID: PMC10403128 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0011520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2023] [Indexed: 07/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Liver fibrosis is one of the histopathological characters during Echinococcus multilocularis infection. The activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) is a key event in the development of liver fibrosis. However, the molecular mechanism of HSC activation in the E. multilocularis infection-induced liver fibrosis remains largely unclear. Here, we reported that mmu-miR-342-3p was most dominantly expressed in HSCs and was upregulated in the HSCs in response to E. multilocularis infection. We further showed that mmu-miR-342-3p was able to bind to the 3' UTR of the Zbtb7a gene and regulated its expression. Moreover, mmu-miR-342-3p expression was negatively correlated with its target gene Zbtb7a in HSCs during E. multilocularis infection. Knockdown of mmu-miR-342-3p promoted the expression of Gfap in the activated HSCs in vitro. In the E. multilocularis-infected mice, knockdown of mmu-miR-342-3p suppressed the expression of α-Sma, Col1α1, and TGF-β but promoted the expression of Gfap. Therefore, mmu-miR-342-3p is a key regulator for activation of HSCs, and inhibiting mmu-miR-342-3p to promote Zbtb7a-mediated TGF-β signaling in activated HSCs could be a novel strategy to treat liver fibrosis induced by E. multilocularis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shanling Cao
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Dexian Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Yixuan Wu
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Junmei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Lixia Pu
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Xuenong Luo
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Xueyong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
- Qinghai Academy of Animal Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Qinghai University, Xining P. R. China
| | - Xiaolin Sun
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Yadong Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Applied Technology on Green-Eco-Healthy Animal Husbandry of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Animal Health Inspection & Internet Technology, Zhejiang International Science and Technology Cooperation Base for Veterinary Medicine and Health Management, China-Australia Joint Laboratory for Animal Health Big Data Analytics, College of Animal Science and Technology & College of Veterinary Medicine of Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Shuai Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, College of Veterinary Medicine, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Xiaola Guo
- State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Key Laboratory of Veterinary Parasitology of Gansu Province, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
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Differential Analysis of Key Proteins Related to Fibrosis and Inflammation in Soluble Egg Antigen of Schistosoma mansoni at Different Infection Times. Pathogens 2023; 12:pathogens12030441. [PMID: 36986363 PMCID: PMC10054402 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens12030441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2023] [Revised: 03/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Schistosomiasis is a major global health problem. Schistosomes secrete antigens into the host tissue that bind to chemokines or inhibit immune cell receptors, regulating the immune responses to allow schistosome development. However, the detailed mechanism of chronic schistosome infection-induced liver fibrosis, including the relationship between secreted soluble egg antigen (SEA) and hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation, is still unknown. We used mass spectrometry to identify the SEA protein sequences from different infection weeks. In the 10th and 12th infection weeks, we focused on the SEA components and screened out the special protein components, particularly fibrosis- and inflammation-related protein sequences. Our results have identified heat shock proteins, phosphorylation-associated enzymes, or kinases, such as Sm16, GSTA3, GPCRs, EF1-α, MMP7, and other proteins linked to schistosome-induced liver fibrosis. After sorting, we found many special proteins related to fibrosis and inflammation, but studies proving their association with schistosomiasis infection are limited. Follow-up studies on MICOS, MATE1, 14-3-3 epsilon, and CDCP1 are needed. We treated the LX-2 cells with the SEA from the 8th, 10th, and 12th infection weeks to test HSC activation. In a trans-well cell model in which PBMCs and HSCs were co-cultured, the SEA could significantly induce TGF-β secretion, especially from the 12th week of infection. Our data also showed that TGF-β secreted by PBMC after the SEA treatment activates LX-2 and upregulates hepatic fibrotic markers α-SMA and collagen 1. Based on these results, the CUB domain-containing protein 1 (CDCP1) screened at the 12th infection week could be investigated further. This study clarifies the trend of immune mechanism variation in the different stages of schistosome infection. However, how egg-induced immune response transformation causes liver tissue fibrosis needs to be studied further.
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