Leishmania major survival in selective Phlebotomus papatasi sand fly vector requires a specific SCG-encoded lipophosphoglycan galactosylation pattern.

ABSTRACT: Phlebotomine sand flies that transmit the protozoan parasite Leishmania differ greatly in their ability to support different parasite species or strains in the laboratory: while some show considerable selectivity, others are more permissive. In "selective" sand flies, Leishmania binding and survival in the fly midgut typically depends upon the abundant promastigote surface adhesin lipophosphoglycan (LPG), which exhibits species- and strain-specific modifications of the dominant phosphoglycan (PG) repeat units. For the "selective" fly Phlebotomus papatasi PpapJ, side chain galactosyl-modifications (scGal) of PG repeats play key roles in parasite binding. We probed the specificity and properties of this scGal-LPG PAMP (Pathogen Associated Molecular Pattern) through studies of natural isolate

SUBMITTER: Dobson DE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2978724 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature