Exploring the cystatins of helminths
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| Year of publication | 2014 |
| Type | Conference abstract |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | Parasitic organisms release numerous types of molecules essential for their survival. Cystatins - cysteine peptidase inhibitors (CPI) were determined as important protein molecules which participate in the processes in the host-parasite interface. Their effect can influence the host immune response, particularly the processing and presentation of antigens, production of nitric oxide, etc. The aim of our study is to expand the information about cystatins produced by helminths and to reveal their functions in four selected parasitic model species representing the major groups of helminths. We used bioinformatic tools to analyze the transcriptomic and/or genomic data of Eudiplozoon nipponicum (Monogenea), Hymenolepis diminuta (Cestoda), Fascioloides magna (Trematoda) and Trichinella spiralis (Nematoda) and we searched for the presence of conserved cystatin domains. The selected genes of CPI of diverse families - stefins, cystatins and kininogens were amplified, cloned and sequenced and significant differences in their nucleotide/amino acid primary structure were revealed. The production of recombinant forms of CPI is in process in order to characterize their structures and functions. |
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