The Mechanism of Genetic Exchange in Trichomonas vaginalis

描述（由申请人提供）：虽然阴道毛滴虫是世界上最常见的非病毒性传播感染，但我们对其最基本的生物学过程的认识仍存在很大差距。目前的阴道毛滴虫生命周期模型说明了通过性行为传播的有丝分裂寄生虫，但目前的数据表明，遗传交换可能发生。尽管毛孢子虫病通常没有症状，但感染与艾滋病毒发病率的增加有关，并与各种其他严重的健康后遗症有关。因此，对这种寄生虫感染的更好的治疗选择可能会降低严重疾病的风险。遗传交换的概念是特别相关的，因为我们认为它的影响，在不断上升的耐药性甲硝唑，药物的选择，在治疗症状感染的阴道毛滴虫。使用广泛的样本收集和综合，多维的方法，该研究应用旨在阐明阴道毛滴虫遗传交换的机制，这将对这种常见疾病的控制和治疗产生巨大影响。为了检验T.我们建议，迷走神经能够进行遗传交换：1.）鉴定来自遗传混合感染的天然产生的重组体; 2.）分析大量临床分离的寄生虫的倍性，鉴定杂种，以确定自然界中通过减数分裂或准性过程重组的可能性; 3.）研究迷走毛滴虫减数分裂特异性基因的调控、表达和功能，因为这些基因已被证明在所有生物的减数分裂或准性过程中严格发挥作用，并已被深入研究。这些研究不仅有可能重新定义我们对阴道毛滴虫生物学、控制和治疗的看法，而且还为利用遗传杂交的可能性打开了大门，遗传杂交是一种具有巨大潜力的强大工具，可用于促进分子研究，并开始阐明T.迷走神经基因组

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Although Trichomonas vaginalis is the most common non-viral sexually transmitted infection in the world, large gaps in our knowledge concerning its most fundamental biological process still remain. The current model of the Trichomonas vaginalis life cycle illustrates mitotically dividing parasites transmitted by sexual acts, however current data suggests that genetic exchange is a likely occurrence. Although trichomoniasis is often asymptomatic, infection has been implicated in an increased incidence with HIV and associated with a variety of other serious health sequelae. Therefore, better treatment options for this parasitic infection may translate into reduced risk for severe disease. The notion of genetic exchange is particularly relevant as we consider its implications in rising resistance to metronidazole, the drug of choice in treating symptomatic infection with Trichomonas vaginalis. Using an expansive sample collection and an integrative, multidimensional approach this research application aims to elucidate the mechanism of genetic exchange in Trichomonas vaginalis, which would have huge implications for the control and treatment of this common disease. To test the hypothesis that T. vaginalis is capable of genetic exchange we propose to: 1.) Identify naturally arising recombinants from genetically mixed infections; 2.) Analyze the ploidy of numerous clinically isolated parasites and identify hybrids in order to determine the possibility of recombination by meiosis or parasexual process in nature; 3.) Investigate the regulation, expression and function of meiosis specific genes in Trichomonas vaginalis, as these genes have been shown to strictly function in meiosis or parasexual processes in all organisms in which they have been studied in depth. These studies not only hold potential to redefine how we think about Trichomonas vaginalis biology, control, and treatment but also open the door to the possibility of utilizing genetic crosses, a powerful tool with great potential which can be employed to facilitate molecular studies and begin to clarify the immensely complex assembly of the T. vaginalis genome.