The physics of adhesion of Giardia duodenalis and it’s structural basis: Understanding the key process for colonization of the small intestine by a globally prevalent human protozoan parasite and etiologic agent of Giardiasis

贾第鞭毛虫寄生在小肠上皮上并引起贾第鞭毛虫病是世界上最常见的腹泻疾病之一，附着和粘附是贾第鞭毛虫寄生在小肠上皮上的关键过程和特性。这个项目结合了传染病专家和物理学家的专业知识，目的是了解这一过程的物理学原理和所施加的力，并将它们分配到各自的分子结构中，这些分子结构负责它们的产生。原子力显微镜的前沿应用将用于测定力，布里渊显微镜和变形细胞荧光法将用于描述寄生虫的力学特性，这些将与人类类器官衍生的初级小肠上皮和定制的合成表面相结合，研究一组世界范围内独特的寄生虫的附着和粘附，这些寄生虫代表了人类致病人群。最终目标是将新知识综合到贾第鞭毛虫附着的综合物理模型中，并与在优先方案框架内合作的团体协调一致。

Attachment and adhesion are the key process and property of Giardia parasites to colonize the small intestinal epithelium and cause Giardiasis, one of the worldwide most prevalent diarrheal diseases. The goal of this project that combines the expertise of infectious disease specialists with physicists is to understand the physics of this process and of the forces that apply, and to assign these to respective molecular structures responsible for their generation. Cutting edge applications of atomic force microscopy will be used to determine forces, of Brillouin microscopy and deformation cytofluorimetry to describe the parasites’ mechanical properties, and these will be combined with human organoid derived primary small intestinal epithelia and custom-built synthetic surfaces to study attachment and adhesion of a worldwide unique set of parasites representative of the human-pathogenic population. The ultimate goal is to synthetize the new knowledge into a comprehensive physical model of Giardia-attachment in concert with groups collaborating within the framework of the priority program.