Gene expression patterns during adaptation of a helminth parasite to different environmental niches.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Schistosome bloodflukes are complex trematodes responsible for 200 million cases of schistosomiasis worldwide. Their life cycle is characterized by a series of remarkable morphological and biochemical transitions between an invertebrate host, an aquatic environment, and a mammalian host. We report a global transcriptional analysis of how this parasite alters gene regulation to adapt to three distinct environments.

Results

Utilizing a genomic microarray made of 12,000 45-50-mer oligonucleotides based on expressed sequence tags, three different developmental stages of the schistosome parasite were analyzed by pair-wise comparisons of transcript hybridization signals. This analysis resulted in the identification of 1,154 developmentally enriched transcripts.

Concl

SUBMITTER: Jolly ER 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1896014 | biostudies-literature | 2007

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature