A next-generation microarray further reveals stage-enriched gene expression pattern in the blood fluke Schistosoma japonicum

Abstract

BackgroundSchistosomiasis is caused by infection with blood flukes of the genus Schistosoma, and ranks, in terms of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), as the third most important neglected tropical disease. Schistosomes have several discrete life stages involving dramatic morphological changes during their development, which require subtle gene expression modulations to complete the complex life-cycle.ResultsIn the current study, we employed a second generation schistosome DNA chip printed with the most comprehensive probe array for studying the Schistosoma japonicum transcriptome, to explore stage-associated gene expression in different developmental phases of S. japonicum. A total of 328, 95, 268 and 532 mRNA transcripts were enriched in cercariae, hepatic schistosomula, adult worms and eggs, respectively. In general, genes associated with transcriptional regulation, cell signalling and motor activity were readily expressed in cercariae; the expression of genes involved in neuronal activities, apoptosis and renewal was modestly upregulated in hepatic schistosomula; transcripts involved in egg production, nutrition metabolism and glycosylation were enriched in adult worms; while genes involved in cell division, microtubule-associated mobility, and host-parasite interplay were relatively highly expressed in eggs.ConclusionsThe study further highlights the expressional features of stage-associated genes in schistosomes with high accuracy. The results provide a better perspective of the biological characteristics among different developmental stages, which may open new avenues for identification of novel vaccine candidates and the development of novel control interventions against schistosomiasis.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-016-1947-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

A Parallel Comparison of Antigen Candidates for Development of an Optimized Serological Diagnosis of Schistosomiasis Japonica in the Philippines

“…(a) The transcriptional profiles of the antigen candidates. The data were extracted from an available next-generation schistosome microarray dataset ( Cai et al, 2017 ). The column represents the mean of normalized fluorescent intensity value.…”

“…A next-generation oligonucleotide microarray was used to determine the expression patterns of the obtained selected target proteins in four developmental stages of S. japonicum (eggs, cercariae, hepatic schistosomula and adult worms). The design and construction of the microarray, as well as the hybridization procedures and feature extraction, have been reported previously ( Cai et al, 2016b ; Cai et al, 2017 ). Raw data and normalized gene level data from the array have been deposited in the public database Gene Expression Omnibus ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/ ) under accession numbers for the platform GPL18617, and series GSE57143.…”

Bioinformatics evaluation of the homologues ofSchistosoma mansonibiomarker proteins of bladder cancer in otherSchistosomaspecies

“…Schistosomiasis is a chronic parasitic infection responsible for nearly 280,000 deaths per year with 200 million people worldwide being infected (Cai et al, 2017). According to the World Health Organization (WHO, 2015), schistosomiasis is second to malaria alone amid the vectorborne diseases in terms of public health and remuneration importance in the tropics.…”

Effects of proteasome inhibitor MG-132 on the parasite Schistosoma mansoni

“…As a post-genomic tool, the microarray technology has produced large-scale transcriptional data in Schistosoma [ 30 – 34 ]. These studies have provided lists of genes potentially involved in the development and sexual differentiation of the parasite, which may contribute to a better comprehension of these processes and identification of new pathways as targets for possible therapeutic intervention [ 30 – 32 , 35 – 41 ]. More recently, the RNA-seq approach has contributed additional valuable information about the parasite transcriptome [ 38 , 42 , 43 ].…”