Harnessing the Toxocara Genome to Underpin Toxocariasis Research and New Interventions

Gasser, Robin B.; Korhonen, Pasi K.; Zhu, Xingquan; Young, Neil D.

doi:10.1016/bs.apar.2015.12.001

Cited by 24 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 142 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Moreover, phylogenetic analysis of T. vitulorum , T. canis, T. cati, T. malaysiensis , Ascaris suum , Anisakis simplex, and Onchocerca volvulus based on amino acid sequences of the entire mitochondrial (mt) genome, revealed that Toxocara spp. are more closely related to A. suum than to A. simplex and O. volvulus ; and that T. malaysiensis is more closely related to T. cati than to T. canis [ 19 ]. T. vitulorum has been shown, based on partial mt genome sequence, to be more closely related to T. malaysiensis than to T. canis and T. cati [ 25 ].…”

Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toxocariasis: a silent threat with a progressive public health impact

et al. 2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundToxocariasis is a neglected parasitic zoonosis that afflicts millions of the pediatric and adolescent populations worldwide, especially in impoverished communities. This disease is caused by infection with the larvae of Toxocara canis and T. cati, the most ubiquitous intestinal nematode parasite in dogs and cats, respectively. In this article, recent advances in the epidemiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis and pharmacotherapies that have been used in the treatment of toxocariasis are reviewed.Main textOver the past two decades, we have come far in our understanding of the biology and epidemiology of toxocariasis. However, lack of laboratory infrastructure in some countries, lack of uniform case definitions and limited surveillance infrastructure are some of the challenges that hindered the estimation of global disease burden. Toxocariasis encompasses four clinical forms: visceral, ocular, covert and neural. Incorrect or misdiagnosis of any of these disabling conditions can result in severe health consequences and considerable medical care spending. Fortunately, multiple diagnostic modalities are available, which if effectively used together with the administration of appropriate pharmacologic therapies, can minimize any unnecessary patient morbidity.ConclusionsAlthough progress has been made in the management of toxocariasis patients, there remains much work to be done. Implementation of new technologies and better understanding of the pathogenesis of toxocariasis can identify new diagnostic biomarkers, which may help in increasing diagnostic accuracy. Also, further clinical research breakthroughs are needed to develop better ways to effectively control and prevent this serious disease.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s40249-018-0437-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

show abstract

Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toxocariasis: a silent threat with a progressive public health impact

et al. 2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Surprisingly, the CAP protein sequences of T. canis predicted in the recent T. canis genome project [ 7 ] that have been curated and described in detail in the present work were not described in previous molecular studies (reviewed by [ 69 – 71 ]). The number of transcripts encoding various CAP proteins in T. canis compares with those inferred from transcriptomic and genomic sequence data sets for A. suum and Trichuris suis [ 72 , 73 ], but is substantially less than those for A. caninum, A. ceylanicum , N. americanus and H. contortus [ 20 , 24 , 29 , 30 , 74 – 76 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

CAP protein superfamily members in Toxocara canis

et al. 2016

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundProteins of the cysteine-rich secretory proteins, antigen 5 and pathogenesis-related 1 (CAP) superfamily are recognized or proposed to play roles in parasite development and reproduction, and in modulating host immune attack and infection processes. However, little is known about these proteins for most parasites.ResultsIn the present study, we explored CAP proteins of Toxocara canis, a socioeconomically important zoonotic roundworm. To do this, we mined and curated transcriptomic and genomic data, predicted and curated full-length protein sequences (n = 28), conducted analyses of these data and studied the transcription of respective genes in different developmental stages of T. canis. In addition, based on information available for Caenorhabditis elegans, we inferred that selected genes (including lon-1, vap-1, vap-2, scl-1, scl-8 and scl-11 orthologs) of T. canis and their interaction partners likely play central roles in this parasite’s development and/or reproduction via TGF-beta and/or insulin-like signaling pathways, or via host interactions.ConclusionIn conclusion, this study could provide a foundation to guide future studies of CAP proteins of T. canis and related parasites, and might assist in finding new interventions against diseases caused by these parasites.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-016-1642-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

show abstract

“…Bowman, 2014). Traditional taxonomic methods can have limitations for the identification and differentiation of some Toxocara species, especially at the larval and/or egg stages (Chen et al, 2012;Gasser et al, 2013Gasser et al, , 2016.…”

Section: Molecular Epidemiology Of Toxocara Species Of Animalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Progress Through 'Omics and Informatics-toward New Diagnostimentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The T. canis genome project (Zhu et al, 2015) represented a major step towards an improved understanding of the molecular biology of the parasite as well as host-parasite relationships, and might support work to develop novel intervention and diagnostic methods (Gasser et al, 2016). The draft genome is 317 Mb in size and was predicted to encode more than 18,500 genes; 78.4% of these genes could be annotated, and 5406 (29.1%) were inferred to have homologues in known biological (KEGG) pathways (Gasser et al, 2016;Zhu et al, 2015). Specifically, 870 ES proteins (including proteases, cell adhesion molecules, lectins, SCP/TAPS proteins, and mucins) were predicted to be involved in host invasion and in parasite-host 'cross-talk', such as immune evasion and/or immune modulation; 458 kinases, 408 phosphatases and 127 GTPases were predicted to have important roles in embryonic, larval development and reproduction; and some of the 156 GPCRs, 268 ion channel proteins and 530 transporters might be drug targets.…”

Section: Progress Through 'Omics and Informatics-toward New Diagnostimentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation