Comparative Study of Leech-Derived Tryptase Inhibitor Genes in Four Medicinal Leech Species.

ABSTRACT: Leeches are aquatic annelids of significant medicinal value, known to produce a variety of antithrombotic proteins. However, the extent of interspecies variation in these bioactive components remains poorly understood. In this study, next-generation sequencing and the Pichia pastoris eukaryotic expression system were employed to systematically analyze the diversity of leech-derived tryptase inhibitor (LDTI) genes and their functional activities across four dominant medicinal leech species: Hirudinaria manillensis, Hirudo nipponia, Whitmania pigra, and Whitmania laevis. Our results revealed a slightly higher genetic variation in LDTI genes and their protein among non-hematophagous leeches (W. pigra and W. laevis) compared to hematophagous spe

SUBMITTER: Xiao M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12467411 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature