Immunomodulatory Effect of a Cysteine-Rich Secretory Protein from an Entomopathogenic Nematode with Sterol-Binding Activity.

ABSTRACT: The Steinernema carpocapsae nematode is known to release several excretory/secretory products (ESPs) in its venom upon contact and during the parasitic infection process of insect hosts. A recurrent family of proteins found in this nematode's venom is the CAP (cysteine-rich secretory protein/antigen 5/pathogenesis-related 1) protein, but the functional role of these proteins remains unknown. To elucidate the biological function, this study focused on characterising the secreted protein, first identified in the venom of the nematode's parasitic stage, and the sequence retrieved from transcriptomic analysis. The structural comparisons of the Sc-CAP protein model, as determined by AlphaFold2, revealed related structures from other parasitic nematodes of vertebrates. Some of these close

SUBMITTER: Frias J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12299418 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature