Cracks in the shell -: zooming in on eggshell formation in the human parasite Schistosoma mansoni
Cracks in the shell -: zooming in on eggshell formation in the human parasite Schistosoma mansoni
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DOI：
10.1007/s00427-005-0467-z
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发表时间：
2005-05-01
影响因子：
2.4
通讯作者：
Kunz, W
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Ebersberger, I;Knobloch, J;Kunz, W
血吸虫病是目前热带地区人类第二常见的寄生虫病，由血吸虫属蠕虫的卵引起。因此，了解鸡蛋的形成，特别是蛋壳的合成，是治疗和预防这种疾病的一个有希望的起点。为了阐明后一个过程的遗传学，我们分析了三个已知的S。曼氏吸虫卵壳蛋白P14、P19和P48与该种推断的蛋白质组和在其它吸虫种中鉴定的卵壳蛋白的背景进行比较。我们的研究结果表明，血吸虫蛋壳的形成涉及到目前三个不同的蛋白质家族（P14，P48和P34蛋壳蛋白家族）组织的多种不同的蛋白质。前两个家族结构简单。它们各自的成员具有相当程度的序列相似性，迄今为止，仅在血吸虫属中观察到。相反，蛋壳蛋白的P34家族是复杂的。它的部分高度分歧的成员只有一个保守的基序，平均长度为67个氨基酸，并在各种吸虫物种中检测到。由此产生的广泛发生的这种蛋白质基序表明在吸虫的蛋壳形成过程中的重要作用。筛选出7,000多个S. mansoni，我们可以确定六个新成员的P34蛋白家族，可能参与蛋壳形成在这个物种。
Schistosomiasis, currently the second most common parasitic disease of humans in tropical regions is caused by the eggs of trematode worms of the genus Schistosoma. Understanding egg formation and specifically the synthesis of the eggshell comprises, consequently, a promising starting point to cure and prevent the disease. To shed light on the genetics of the latter process, we analysed the three known S. mansoni eggshell proteins P14, P19 and P48 against the background of the species inferred proteome and of eggshell proteins identified in other trematode species. Our results suggest that eggshell formation in Schistosoma involves a multitude of different proteins organised in currently three distinct protein families (P14, P48 and P34 eggshell protein family). The first two families are of simple structure. Their respective members share a substantial degree of sequence similarity and are, to date, observed only in the genus Schistosoma. In contrast, the P34 family of eggshell proteins is complex. Its in part highly diverged members share only a conserved motif of 67-aa length on average and are detected in various trematode species. The resulting widespread occurrence of this protein motif suggests an important role during eggshell formation in trematodes. Screening more than 7,000 putative proteins of S. mansoni, we could identify six new members of the P34 protein family that are likely to be involved in eggshell formation in this species.