Crosstalk between Entamoeba histolytica and the human intestinal tract during amoebiasis

Abstract

The protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica is the microbial agent of amoebiasis - an infection that is endemic worldwide and is associated with high morbidity and mortality rates. As the disease develops, virulent E. histolytica deplete the mucus layer, interact with the intestinal epithelium, and then degrade the colonic mucosa and disrupt the extracellular matrix (ECM). Our research demonstrated that virulent parasites with an invasive phenotype display rapid, highly specific changes in their transcriptome (notably for essential factors involved in carbohydrate metabolism and the processing of glycosylated residues). Moreover, combined activation of parasite and host lytic enzymes leads to the destruction of the intestinal parenchyma. Together, these enzymes degrade the mucus layer and the ECM, and trigger the inflammatory response essential to the development of amoebiasis.

Cdc42/Rac Interactive Binding Containing Effector Proteins in Unicellular Protozoans With Reference to Human Host: Locks of the Rho Signaling

“…Amoebic pathogenicity is selected coincidently in the lumen of the intestine because the parasite uses the same methods to kill bacteria or cause disease by damaging the host cells ( Bosch and Siderovski, 2015 ). Amoebic phagocytosis and its mechanism show similarities with the action of macrophages during the phagocytosis of bacteria and unwanted cells, which supports the idea of coincidental selection ( Ghosh and Samuelson, 1997 ; Labruyere et al, 2019 ). The parasite uses anterior pseudopods and posterior uroids to move inside the human intestine.…”

Acetylcholine Upregulates Entamoeba histolytica Virulence Factors, Enhancing Parasite Pathogenicity in Experimental Liver Amebiasis

“…However, since the signals that can lead to a symptomatic E. histolytica infection are unknown, alterations in host response to the pathogen could explain such variety in disease evolution ( Nakada-Tsukui and Nozaki, 2016 ). In summary, acute amebiasis could result from the parasite’s ability to respond to extracellular cues and from its rapid adaptation to environmental conditions that trigger the ameba’s invasive behavior ( Labruyère et al., 2019 ).…”

Acetylation is the most abundant actin modification inEntamoeba histolyticaand modifications of actin's amino‐terminal domain change cytoskeleton activities

“…The vegetative cell (the trophozoite) crosses the host's barriers and enters the tissue, where it destroys the extracellular matrix, triggers inflammation, and ultimately induces cell death. The trophozoite's invasive behaviour is based on three main activities: motility, the invasion of human tissues following adhesion to the extracellular matrix and cells, and the execution of toxic or lytic factors (Guillén, 1993;Labruyère, Thibeaux, Olivo-Marin, & Guillén, 2017;Ralston et al, 2014;Ralston & Petri, 2011). The reorganisation of the actin cytoskeleton (regulated in space and time; Meza, Talamás-Rohana, & Vargas, 2006) is important for functions such as the phagocytosis and trogocytosis of human cells (Guillén, 1996;Marion, Laurent, & Guillén, 2005;Ralston et al, 2014), cytolysis (Faust & Guillen, 2012), chemotaxis (Blazquez et al, 2008), cytokinesis, and the capping of surface receptors involved in the escape from the host immune response (Guillén, 1996;Meza et al, 2006).…”