Comparative analysis of transcriptional profiles of Schistosoma japonicum adult worms derived from primary-infected and re-infected water buffaloes

Abstract

Background Schistosoma japonicum ( S. japonicum ) is an important zoonotic parasite that is prevalent in China and parts of Southeast Asia. Water buffaloes are an important reservoir and the main transmission sources of S. japonicum . However, self-curing and resistance to re-infection have been observed in water buffaloes. Results In this study, we compared the morphometry and differences in transcriptional expression of adult S. japonicum worms recovered from primary-infected and re-infected water buffaloes using Illumina RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq) technology. Results of morphometry analysis revealed that adult S. japonicum worms recovered from re-infected water buffaloes were runtish with smaller organs. The ventral length of male worms was shorter in re-infected buffaloes (328 ± 13 vs 273 ± 8 µm, P < 0.05), and in female worms the oral sucker length (44 ± 3 vs 33 ± 5 µm, P < 0.05), ovary length (578 ± 23 vs 297 ± 27 µm, P < 0.05) and width (150 ± 8 vs 104 ± 9 µm, P < 0.05) were shorter, with fewer eggs in the uteri (41 ± 2 vs 12 ± 1, P < 0.05). Of 13,605 identified genes, 112 were differentially expressed, including 51 upregulated and 61 downregulated genes, in worms from re-infected compared with primary-infected water buffaloes. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis revealed that GO terms such as “oxidation-reduction process”, “calcium-dependent phospholipid binding”, “lipid binding” and “calcium ion binding” were significantly enriched in downregulated genes, whereas GO terms related to metabolism and biosynthesis were significantly enriched in upregulated genes. The results revealed that the downregulation of some important genes might contribute to a reduction in worm numbers and maldevelopment of surviving worms in re-infected water buffaloes. Furthermore, upregulation of genes related to metabolic processes and biosynthesis might be a compensatory mechanism of worms in disadvantageous environments. Conclusions To our knowledge, our results present the first large-scale transcriptional expression study identifying the differences between adult S. japonicum worms from primary-infected and re-infected water buffaloes, and particularly emphasize differential expression that may affect the survival and growth of worms in re-infected water buffalo. This will provide new insight into screening for anti-schistosome targets and vaccine candidates. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s13071-019-3600-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to ...

Risk prediction of two types of potential snail habitats in Anhui Province of China: Model-based approaches

“…In China, all infections are due to Schistosoma japonicum with Oncomelania hupensis as the sole intermediate snail host which is amphibious rather than aquatic and associated with high moisture microhabitats [5]. In contrast to other schistosome species adapted to humans (S. haematobium, S. mansoni, S. intercalatum, S. guineensis and S. mekongi), S. japonicum not only infects humans but also a wide variety of mammals, particularly domestic animals that act as reservoirs such as the water buffalo [6]. Based on the epidemiological pattern of schistosomiasis and ecological characteristics of the snails, snail habitats can be categorized into three types in China: (i) marshland and lake areas, (ii) mountainous and hilly areas, and (iii) plain areas with waterway networks [7].…”

Comparative Transcriptome Analyses of Schistosoma japonicum Derived From SCID Mice and BALB/c Mice: Clues to the Abnormality in Parasite Growth and Development

“…Numerous researchers had endeavored to explore the genes participating or involved in the regulation of the development and reproductive maturation of schistosomes by comparative transcriptome, proteome, and metabolome research and gained great discoveries in the growth and reproductive biology of schistosomes (Gupta and Basch, 1987;Haseeb et al, 1989;Siegel and Tracy, 1989;Haseeb and Eveland, 1991;Grevelding et al, 1997;Haseeb, 1998;Liu et al, 2006;Cogswell et al, 2012;Leutner et al, 2013;Protasio et al, 2013;Sun et al, 2014;Han et al, 2015a,b;Cao et al, 2016;Picard et al, 2016;Zhai et al, 2018;Li et al, 2019;Mao et al, 2019). Recently, we have also investigated and reported the differential metabolomic profiles of S. japonicum parasites from SCID and BALB/c mice in order to explore the molecular events involved in the aberrant morphologies in the growth and reproduction of schistosomes from a metabolomic level.…”