Cyclophilins in Echinococcus granulosus

包虫病是由一种寄生虫感染引起的，这种寄生虫通过动物传播给人。这种疾病在世界范围内导致大量的人类发病率和死亡率，在澳大利亚是地方病。目前可用的药物对这种寄生虫的效果很差，这种疾病的治疗主要依赖于手术切除往往很大的寄生虫包囊，在这种情况下是可能的。识别感染者的血液测试依赖于使用从动物身上获得的寄生虫样本，这导致材料供应和质量控制方面的困难。该实验室的研究发现，包虫病寄生虫产生一种与药物环孢素A结合的蛋白质，并在包虫病患者中产生针对该蛋白质的特异性抗体。其他人的初步研究发现，环孢菌素A在动物模型系统中对包虫病具有抗寄生虫作用。本研究项目将详细研究包虫中亲环素蛋白及其相关蛋白的特性，它们与环孢素A的相互作用，在确定的培养条件下环孢素A对寄生虫的影响，环孢菌素A发挥抗寄生虫作用的机制，以及亲环素在人类包虫病诊断试验中的应用前景。这项研究将有助于更好地了解这种病原体的基本生物学，并可能确定改进的化疗和感染诊断方法。

Hydatid disease is caused by a parasitic infection that is transmitted to people by animals. The disease causes substantial human morbidity and mortality worldwide, and is endemic in Australia. Currently available drugs are poorly effective against the parasite and treatment of the disease relies mainly on surgical removal of often large parasitic cysts, where this is possible. Blood tests to identify people who are infected rely on the use of parasite samples obtained from animals, which leads to difficulties with adequate supply of material and quality control. Research in this laboratory discovered that the hydatid parasite produces a protein that binds the drug cyclosporin A and that specific antibodies are made to this protein in hydatid patients. Preliminary research by others found that cyclosporin A had anti-parasitic effects on hydatid disease in an animal model system. This research project will examine in detail the characteristics of the cyclophilin protein and related proteins, in the hydatid parasite, their interaction with cyclosporin A, the effects of cyclosporin A on the parasite in defined culture conditions, the mechanism by which cyclosporin A exerts anti-parasitic effects and the prospects for use of cyclophilin in tests for the diagnosis of human hydatid disease. The research will contribute to a better understanding of the basic biology of this pathogen and may identify improved methods for the chemotherapy and diagnosis of infection.