ABSTRACT
Leishmaniases are widespread neglected diseases with an incidence of 1.6 million new cases and 40 thousand deaths per year. Leishmania parasites may show distinct, species-specific patterns of virulence that lead to different clinical manifestations. It is well known that successive in vitro passages (SIVP) lead to the attenuation of virulence, but neither the metabolism nor the pathways involved in these processes are well understood. Herein, promastigotes of a virulent L. amazonensis strain recently isolated from mice was compared to SIVP derived and attenuated promastigotes, submitted to 10, 40, and 60 axenic passages and named R10, R40, and R60, respectively. In vitro assays and in vivo tests were performed to characterize and confirmed the attenuation profiles. A metabolomic fingerprint comparison of R0, R10, and R60 was performed by means of capillary electrophoresis, liquid and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. To validate the metabolomic data, qPCR for selected loci, flow cytometry to measure aPS exposure, sensitivity to antimony tartrate and ROS production assays were conducted. The 65 identified metabolites were clustered in biochemical categories and mapped in eight metabolic pathways: ABC transporters; fatty acid biosynthesis; glycine, serine and threonine metabolism; ß-alanine metabolism; glutathione metabolism; oxidative phosphorylation; glycerophospholipid metabolism and lysine degradation. The obtained metabolomic data correlated with previous proteomic findings of the SVIP parasites and the gene expression of 13 selected targets. Late SIVP cultures were more sensitive to SbIII produced more ROS and exposed less phosphatidylserine in their surface. The correspondent pathways were connected to build a biochemical map of the most significant alterations involved with the process of attenuation of L. amazonensis. Overall, the reported data pointed out to a very dynamic and continuous metabolic reprogramming process, accompanied by changes in energetic, lipid and redox metabolisms, membrane remodeling and reshaping of parasite-host cells interactions, causing impacts in chemotaxis, host inflammatory responses and infectivity at the early stages of infection.
Subject(s)
Leishmania/metabolism , Metabolome , Metabolomics , Animals , Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid , Computational Biology , Female , Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry , Interferon-gamma , Leishmania/classification , Leishmaniasis/parasitology , Metabolomics/methods , Mice , Oxidative Stress , Reactive Oxygen SpeciesABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Glycosylphosphatidylinositol is a surface molecule important for host-parasite interactions. Mannosyltransferase (GPI-14) is an essential enzyme for adding mannose on the glycosylphosphatidyl group. This study attempted to overexpress the GPI-14 gene in Leishmania braziliensis to investigate its role in the antimony-resistance phenotype of this parasite. RESULTS: GPI-14 mRNA levels determined by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) showed an increased expression in clones transfected with GPI-14 compared to its respective wild-type line. In order to investigate the expression profile of the surface carbohydrates of these clones, the intensity of the fluorescence emitted by the parasites after concanavalin-A (a lectin that binds to the terminal regions of α-D-mannosyl and α-D-glucosyl residues) treatment was analyzed. The results showed that the clones transfected with GPI-14 express 2.8-fold more mannose and glucose residues than those of the wild-type parental line, indicating effective GPI-14 overexpression. Antimony susceptibility tests using promastigotes showed that clones overexpressing the GPI-14 enzyme are 2.4- and 10.5-fold more resistant to potassium antimonyl tartrate (SbIII) than the parental non-transfected line. Infection analysis using THP-1 macrophages showed that amastigotes from both GPI-14 overexpressing clones were 3-fold more resistant to SbIII than the wild-type line. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest the involvement of the GPI-14 enzyme in the SbIII-resistance phenotype of L. braziliensis.
Subject(s)
Antimony/pharmacology , Antiprotozoal Agents/pharmacology , Leishmania braziliensis/enzymology , Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous/parasitology , Mannosyltransferases/metabolism , Drug Resistance , Glycosylphosphatidylinositols/metabolism , Leishmania braziliensis/drug effects , Leishmania braziliensis/genetics , Mannosyltransferases/genetics , Phenotype , Protozoan Proteins/genetics , Protozoan Proteins/metabolismABSTRACT
Ascorbate peroxidase (APX) is a redox enzyme of the trypanothione pathway that converts hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) into water molecules. In the present study, the APX gene was overexpressed in Leishmania braziliensis to investigate its contribution to the trivalent antimony (SbIII)-resistance phenotype. Western blot results demonstrated that APX-overexpressing parasites had higher APX protein levels in comparison with the wild-type line (LbWTS). APX-overexpressing clones showed an 8-fold increase in the antimony-resistance index over the parental line. In addition, our results indicated that these clones were approximately 1.8-fold more tolerant to H2O2 than the LbWTS line, suggesting that the APX enzyme plays an important role in the defence against oxidative stress. Susceptibility tests revealed that APX-overexpressing L. braziliensis lines were more resistant to isoniazid, an antibacterial agent that interacts with APX. Interestingly, this compound enhanced the anti-leishmanial SbIII effect, indicating that this combination represents a good strategy for leishmaniasis chemotherapy. Our data demonstrate that APX enzyme is involved in the development of L. braziliensis antimony-resistance phenotype and may be an attractive therapeutic target in the design of new strategies for leishmaniasis treatment.
Subject(s)
Antimony/pharmacology , Antiprotozoal Agents/pharmacology , Ascorbate Peroxidases/metabolism , Leishmania braziliensis/drug effects , Leishmania braziliensis/enzymology , Blotting, Western , Drug Resistance , Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic , Oxidative Stress , Parasitic Sensitivity Tests , Phenotype , Protozoan Proteins/metabolismABSTRACT
Eukaryotic initiation factor 5A (eIF5A) is a conserved protein with an essential role in translation elongation. Using one and two-dimensional western blotting, we showed that the eIF5A protein level was 2-fold lower in benznidazole (BZ)-resistant (BZR and 17LER) Trypanosoma cruzi populations than in their respective susceptible counterparts (BZS and 17WTS). To confirm the role of eIF5A in BZ resistance, we transfected BZS and 17WTS with the wild-type eIF5A or mutant eIF5A-S2A (in which serine 2 was replaced by alanine). Upon overexpressing eIF5A, both susceptible lines became approximately 3- and 5-fold more sensitive to BZ. In contrast, the eIF5A-S2A mutant did not alter its susceptibility to BZ. These data suggest that BZ resistance might arise from either decreasing the translation of proteins that require eIF5A, or as a consequence of differential levels of precursors for the hypusination reactions (e.g., spermidine and trypanothione), both of which alter BZ's effects in the parasite.
Subject(s)
Drug Resistance/genetics , Nitroimidazoles/pharmacology , Peptide Initiation Factors/metabolism , RNA-Binding Proteins/metabolism , Trypanocidal Agents/pharmacology , Trypanosoma cruzi/drug effects , Trypanosoma cruzi/enzymology , Gene Expression , Humans , Peptide Initiation Factors/analysis , Peptide Initiation Factors/drug effects , RNA-Binding Proteins/analysis , RNA-Binding Proteins/drug effects , Trypanosoma cruzi/genetics , Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 5AABSTRACT
Eukaryotic initiation factor 5A (eIF5A) is a conserved protein with an essential role in translation elongation. Using one and two-dimensional western blotting, we showed that the eIF5A protein level was 2-fold lower in benznidazole (BZ)-resistant (BZR and 17LER) Trypanosoma cruzi populations than in their respective susceptible counterparts (BZS and 17WTS). To confirm the role of eIF5A in BZ resistance, we transfected BZS and 17WTS with the wild-type eIF5A or mutant eIF5A-S2A (in which serine 2 was replaced by alanine). Upon overexpressing eIF5A, both susceptible lines became approximately 3- and 5-fold more sensitive to BZ. In contrast, the eIF5A-S2A mutant did not alter its susceptibility to BZ. These data suggest that BZ resistance might arise from either decreasing the translation of proteins that require eIF5A, or as a consequence of differential levels of precursors for the hypusination reactions (e.g., spermidine and trypanothione), both of which alter BZ's effects in the parasite.
Subject(s)
Humans , Trypanocidal Agents/pharmacology , Trypanosoma cruzi/drug effects , Trypanosoma cruzi/enzymology , Drug Resistance/genetics , Peptide Initiation Factors/metabolism , RNA-Binding Proteins/metabolism , Nitroimidazoles/pharmacology , Trypanosoma cruzi/genetics , Gene Expression , Peptide Initiation Factors/analysis , Peptide Initiation Factors/drug effects , RNA-Binding Proteins/analysis , RNA-Binding Proteins/drug effectsABSTRACT
Ascorbate peroxidase (APX) is a redox enzyme of the trypanothione pathway that converts hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) into water molecules. In the present study, the APX gene was overexpressed in Leishmania braziliensis to investigate its contribution to the trivalent antimony (SbIII)-resistance phenotype. Western blot results demonstrated that APX-overexpressing parasites had higher APX protein levels in comparison with the wild-type line (LbWTS). APX-overexpressing clones showed an 8-fold increase in the antimony-resistance index over the parental line. In addition, our results indicated that these clones were approximately 1.8-fold more tolerant to H2O2 than the LbWTS line, suggesting that the APX enzyme plays an important role in the defence against oxidative stress. Susceptibility tests revealed that APX-overexpressing L. braziliensis lines were more resistant to isoniazid, an antibacterial agent that interacts with APX. Interestingly, this compound enhanced the anti-leishmanial SbIII effect, indicating that this combination represents a good strategy for leishmaniasis chemotherapy. Our data demonstrate that APX enzyme is involved in the development of L. braziliensis antimony-resistance phenotype and may be an attractive therapeutic target in the design of new strategies for leishmaniasis treatment.
Subject(s)
Leishmania braziliensis/drug effects , Leishmania braziliensis/enzymology , Ascorbate Peroxidases/metabolism , Antimony/pharmacology , Antiprotozoal Agents/pharmacology , Phenotype , Drug Resistance , Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic , Protozoan Proteins/metabolism , Blotting, Western , Oxidative Stress , Parasitic Sensitivity TestsABSTRACT
A leishmaniose é um complexo de doenças com ampla diversidade epidemiológica e clínica causada por protozoários parasitas pertencentes ao gênero Leishmania. A fosforilação de proteínas é uma das modificações pós-traducionais mais estudadas, que está envolvida em diferentes eventos celulares em Leishmania. Na primeira parte desse estudo, nós realizamos uma análise fosfoproteômica comparativa de linhagens de L. braziliensis sensível e resistente ao antimônio trivalente (SbIII), utilizando eletroforese em gel diferencial bidimensional (2DDIGE) seguida por espectrometria de massas. Para investigar a abundância diferencial de fosfoproteínas associada com resposta ao estresse induzido à droga e mecanismos de resistência ao SbIII, nós comparamos amostras não tratadas e tratadas com SbIII de cada linhagem. Análises comparativas revelaram um total de 116 spots que apresentaram diferença estatisticamente significativa na abundância de fosfoproteínas, incluindo 11 e 34 spots especificamente correlacionados com estresse devido ao tratamento com a droga e resistência ao SbIII, respectivamente. Foram identificadas 48 proteínas diferentes distribuídas em sete categorias de processos biológicos. A categoria enovelamento de proteínas/chaperonas e resposta ao estresse está envolvida principalmente em resposta ao estresse com SbIII, enquanto que as categorias antioxidante/detoxificação, processos metabólicos, processamento de RNA/DNA e biossíntese de proteínas estão moduladas no caso de resistência à droga
Alinhamentos de sequências múltiplas foram realizados para validar a conservação de resíduos fosforilados em nove proteínas identificadas nesse estudo. Ensaios de Western blot foram conduzidos para validar a análise quantitativa do fosfoproteoma. Os resultados mostraram níveis de expressão diferencial de três fosfoproteínas nas linhagens analisadas. Na segunda parte desse estudo, análises de Western blot demonstraram que as proteínas nucleosídeo difosfato quinase b (NDKb) e fator de elongação 2 (EF2) estão mais e menos expressas, respectivamente, na linhagem de L. braziliensis resistente ao SbIII, corroborando nossos dados anteriores do fosfoproteoma. NDKb é responsável pela síntese de nucleosídeos trifosfatos e tem papel chave no metabolismo de purina em protozoários tripanossomatídeos. EF2 é um importante fator para síntese de proteínas
A superexpressão dos genes NDKb e EF2 nas espécies L. braziliensis e L. infantum foi realizada para investigar a contribuição destas proteínas no fenótipo de resistência ao SbIII. As linhagens de L. braziliensis superexpressoras de NDKb ou EF2 foram 1,6 a 2,1 vezes mais resistentes ao Sb III do que a linhagem sensível não transfectada. Em contraste, nenhuma diferença na susceptibilidade ao SbIII foi observada em L. infantum superexpressora de NDKb ou EF2. Ensaios de susceptibilidade mostraram que as linhagens de L. braziliensis superexpressoras de NDKb apresentaram elevada resistência à lamivudina, um agente antiviral, mas esta droga não alterou a atividade leishmanicida em associação com SbIII. O clone de L. braziliensis superexpressor de EF2 foi 1,2 vezes mais resistente aoinibidor da quinase de EF2 do que a linhagem sensível. Surpreendentemente, este inibidor aumentou o efeito leishmanicida do Sb III, sugerindo que esta associação pode ser uma estratégia valiosa para a quimioterapia das leishmanioses. Portanto, esse novo estudo nos permitiu determinar o perfil do fosfoproteoma de L. braziliensis, identificando alguns candidatos potenciais para redes bioquímicas ou de sinalização associadas com o fenótipo de resistência ao SbIII neste parasito. Além disso, nossos resultados representam o primeiro estudo de superexpressão dos genes NDKb e EF2 que demonstra um aumento de resistência ao SbIII em L. braziliensis, o que pode contribuir para o desenvolvimento de novas estratégias para o tratamento das leishmanioses
Subject(s)
Humans , Animals , Mice , Leishmania , Leishmaniasis/drug therapy , Proteome/analysisABSTRACT
Protein phosphorylation is one of the most studied post-translational modifications that is involved in different cellular events in Leishmania. In this study, we performed a comparative phosphoproteomics analysis of potassium antimonyl tartrate (SbIII)-resistant and -susceptible lines of Leishmania braziliensis using a 2D-DIGE approach followed by MS. In order to investigate the differential phosphoprotein abundance associated with the drug-induced stress response and SbIII-resistance mechanisms, we compared nontreated and SbIII-treated samples of each line. Pair wise comparisons revealed a total of 116 spots that showed a statistically significant difference in phosphoprotein abundance, including 11 and 34 spots specifically correlated with drug treatment and resistance, respectively. We identified 48 different proteins distributed into seven biological process categories. The category "protein folding/chaperones and stress response" is mainly implicated in response to SbIII treatment, while the categories "antioxidant/detoxification," "metabolic process," "RNA/DNA processing," and "protein biosynthesis" are modulated in the case of antimony resistance. Multiple sequence alignments were performed to validate the conservation of phosphorylated residues in nine proteins identified here. Western blot assays were carried out to validate the quantitative phosphoproteome analysis. The results revealed differential expression level of three phosphoproteins in the lines analyzed. This novel study allowed us to profile the L. braziliensis phosphoproteome, identifying several potential candidates for biochemical or signaling networks associated with antimony resistance phenotype in this parasite.
Subject(s)
Antimony/pharmacology , Leishmania braziliensis/drug effects , Leishmania braziliensis/metabolism , Phosphoproteins/analysis , Two-Dimensional Difference Gel Electrophoresis/methods , Amino Acid Sequence , Computer Simulation , Drug Resistance/drug effects , Molecular Sequence Data , Phosphoproteins/metabolism , Phosphorylation , Protein Processing, Post-Translational/drug effects , Protozoan Proteins/analysis , Protozoan Proteins/metabolism , Reproducibility of ResultsABSTRACT
Transportadores ABC (ATP-binding cassette) abrangem proteínas transmembrana, que utilizam a energia resultante da hidrólise de ATP, para transportar uma variedade de moléculas através de membranas biológicas, incluindo drogas quimioterapêuticas. Alguns membros dessa superfamília ABC estão associados com quimioresistência através da superexpressão de proteínas de resistência a múltiplas drogas (multidrug resistance associated protein MRP). Uma dessas proteínas é a Pgp (P-glicoproteína), que está relacionada à resistência através da extrusão de compostos tóxicos da célula. O geneMRPA, um transportador da subfamília ABCC, está envolvido na resistência pelo sequestro do conjugado metal-tiol em vesículas próximas da bolsa flagelar da Leishmania. Neste estudo, formas promastigotas de populações sensíveis e resistentes ao antimonial trivalente(SbIII) de quatro espécies de Leishmania, L. (V.) guyanensis, L. (L.) amazonensis, L. (V.) braziliensis e L. (L.) infantum chagasi, foram analisadas quanto: a localização cromossômica, presença de amplificação extracromossomal e análise da amplificação do gene MRPA; níveis de mRNA dos genes MRPA e MRP; expressão da proteína Pgp e determinação do nível intracelular de SbIII...
Subject(s)
Humans , Animals , Male , Mice , Leishmania , Leishmaniasis/drug therapy , ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters/physiologyABSTRACT
Transportadores ABC (ATP-binding cassette) abrangem proteínas transmembrana, que utilizam a energia resultante da hidrólise de ATP, para transportar uma variedade de moléculas através de membranas biológicas, incluindo drogas quimioterapêuticas. Alguns membros dessa superfamília ABC estão associados com quimioresistência através da superexpressão de proteínas de resistência a múltiplas drogas (multidrug resistance associated protein MRP). Uma dessas proteínas é a Pgp (P-glicoproteína), que está relacionada à resistência através da extrusão de compostos tóxicos da célula. O geneMRPA, um transportador da subfamília ABCC, está envolvido na resistência pelo sequestro do conjugado metal-tiol em vesículas próximas da bolsa flagelar da Leishmania. Neste estudo, formas promastigotas de populações sensíveis e resistentes ao antimonial trivalente(SbIII) de quatro espécies de Leishmania, L. (V.) guyanensis, L. (L.) amazonensis, L. (V.) braziliensis e L. (L.) infantum chagasi, foram analisadas quanto: a localização cromossômica, presença de amplificação extracromossomal e análise da amplificação do gene MRPA; níveis de mRNA dos genes MRPA e MRP; expressão da proteína Pgp e determinação do nível intracelular de SbIII
Ensaios de PFGE indicaram a associação de amplificação cromossomal e extracromossomal do gene MRPA com o fenótipo de resistência à droga nas espécies de Leishmania estudadas. Os resultados obtidos através de lise alcalina dos parasitos mostraram a presença de amplificação extracromossomal apenas na amostra resistente de L. (V.) braziliensis. Análises de Southern blot com as endonucleases BamHI e HindIII indicaram a presença de polimorfismos na sequência do gene MRPA em algumas amostras de Leishmania analisadas. Adicionalmente, foi observada amplificação desse gene nas populações de Leishmania resistentes ao SbIII. Ensaios de PCR quantitativo em tempo real mostraram aumento dos níveis de mRNA do gene MRPA nas populações resistentes de L. (L.) amazonensis e L. (V.) braziliensis, comparado com seus respectivos pares sensíveis. Os níveis de mRNA do gene MRP estão aumentados em todas as populações de Leishmania resistentes ao SbIII analisadas neste estudo. Os resultados de Western blot revelaram que a proteína Pgp está mais expressa nas populações resistentes de L. (V.) guyanensis e L. (L.) amazonensis. Os dados obtidosde quantificação dos níveis intracellulares de SbIII por espectrometria de absorção atômicaem forno de grafite mostraram uma redução no acúmulo de SbIII, nas populaçõesresistentes de L. (V.) guyanensis, L. (L.) amazonensis e L. (V.) braziliensis, quando comparadas às respectivas populações sensíveis. Nossos resultados indicam que os mecanismos de resistência ao antimônio são diferentes entre as espécies de Leishmania analisadas
