The mode-of-action for pheromone-induced paralysis in Pristionchus pacificus

项目摘要 寄生线虫长期以来一直危害农作物、宠物、牲畜和人类。宽 目前广谱驱虫药作为预防药物的使用导致了 许多人对这些化合物产生了线虫耐药性 这促使人们探索具有新的遗传靶点的化合物。 我们发现昆虫信息素既可以作为引诱剂，也可以 驱虫剂代表着定义新药物靶点的独特机会。 我们的建议是使用一种脂类来确定这种信息素的作用模式- 结合蛋白作为基因的切入点。我们提出了三个独立的 涉及候选基因表达和功能分析的策略， 利用正向遗传筛选来识别信息素受体和其他 信号通路的组成部分。

Project Summary Parasitic nematodes have long harmed crops, pets, livestock, and humans. Wide usage of current broad-spectrum anthelmintics as preventive medicine has led to emerging nematode resistance against these compounds in many human populations, prompting the exploration of compounds with novel genetic targets. Our discovery that an insect pheromone can act both as an attractant as well as an anthelmintic represents a unique opportunity to define a novel drug target. Our proposal is to identify the mode-of-action for this pheromone using a lipid- binding protein as the genetic entry point. We propose three independent strategies involving candidate gene expression and functional analysis, along with forward genetic screens to identify the pheromone receptor and other components of the signaling pathway.