Apicomplexan parasite, Eimeria falciformis, co-opts host tryptophan catabolism for life cycle progression in mouse.

ABSTRACT: The obligate intracellular apicomplexan parasites, e.g. Toxoplasma gondii and Plasmodium species, induce an IFNγ-driven induction of host indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), the first and rate-limiting enzyme of tryptophan catabolism in the kynurenine pathway. Induction of IDO1 supposedly depletes cellular levels of tryptophan in host cells, which is proposed to inhibit the in vitro growth of auxotrophic pathogens. In vivo function of IDO during infections, however, is not clear, let alone controversial. We show that Eimeria falciformis, an apicomplexan parasite infecting the mouse caecum, induces IDO1 in the epithelial cells of the organ, and the enzyme expression coincides with the parasite development. The absence or inhibition of IDO1/2 and of two downstream enzymes in infected animals

SUBMITTER: Schmid M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3370202 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature