Some protozoan infections such as Toxoplasma, Cryptosporidium, and Plasmodium can be transmitted through stem cell transplantations. To our knowledge, so far, there is no study about transmission of Leishmania parasites in stem cell transplantation and interactions between parasites and stem cells in vitro. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the interaction between different species of Leishmania parasites and adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs). ADMSCs have been isolated, cultured, characterized, and infected with different species of Leishmania parasites (L. donovani, L. major, L. tropica, and L. infantum). Infectivity was examined by Giemsa staining, microculture, and polymerase chain reaction methods. As a result, infectivity of ADMSCs by Leishmania parasites has been determined for the first time in this study. According to our findings, it is very important that donors are screened for Leishmania parasites before stem cell transplantations in regions where leishmaniasis is endemic.
Research on the conjugates of synthetic polyelectrolytes with antigenic molecules, such as proteins, peptides, or carbohydrates, is an attractive area due to their highly immunogenic character in comparison to classical adjuvants. For example, polyacrylic acid (PAA) is a weak polyelectrolyte and has been used in several biomedical applications such as immunological studies, drug delivery, and enzyme immobilization. However, to our knowledge, there are no studies that document immune-stimulant properties of PAA in Leishmania infection. Therefore, we aimed to develop a potential vaccine candidate against leishmaniasis by covalently conjugating PAA with an immunologically vital molecule of lipophosphoglycan (LPG) found in Leishmania parasites. In the study, LPG and PAA were conjugated by a multi-step procedure, and final products were analyzed with GPC and MALDI-TOF MS techniques. In cytotoxicity experiments, LPG-PAA conjugates did not indicate toxic effects on L929 and J774 murine macrophage cells. We assume that LPG-PAA conjugate can be a potential vaccine candidate, and will be immunologically characterized in further studies to prove its potential.
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