U.S.-Venezuela Cooperative Science: Anaplasma Marginale Proteins and Attachment to Bovine Red Cell Ligands

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This award will support collaborative research between Prof. Roger Laine and Prof. Marta Ysern-Caldenty of the Universidad Simon Bolivar in Caracas, Venezuela. The objective of the research is to study the cell surface proteins of Anaplasma marginale, a micro-organism that binds to bovine red cells with an end result similar to the invasion of red cells by malarial protozoans. The investigators plan to study the molecular entities that interact at the cell surfaces of these micro-organisms with bovine erythrocytes, to form a recognition and binding pair. Preliminary evidence indicates that this binding pair consists of a complex carbohydrate in the blood cell and a binding protein on the Anaplasma. This work will serve to further elucidate the mechanisms behind these binding interactions. The Venezuelan side will contribute expertise in the biological system under study while the U.S. side brings to bear their experience with chemical structural analysis. Because Anaplasma marginale has a similar relation to bovine red blood cells as malaria does to human red cells, the techniques used and knowledge gained in surface chemistry studies using bovine red blood cells should prove beneficial to research in both areas.