Schistosoma mansoni immunomodulatory molecule Sm16/SPO-1/SmSLP is a member of the trematode-specific helminth defence molecules (HDMs).

ABSTRACT:

Background

Sm16, also known as SPO-1 and SmSLP, is a low molecular weight protein (~16kDa) secreted by the digenean trematode parasite Schistosoma mansoni, one of the main causative agents of human schistosomiasis. The molecule is secreted from the acetabular gland of the cercariae during skin invasion and is believed to perform an immune-suppressive function to protect the invading parasite from innate immune cell attack.

Methodology/principal findings

We show that Sm16 homologues of the Schistosomatoidea family are phylogenetically related to the helminth defence molecule (HDM) family of immunomodulatory peptides first described in Fasciola hepatica. Interrogation of 69 helminths genomes demonstrates that HDMs are exclusive to trematode species. Structural analyses of Sm16

SUBMITTER: Shiels J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7373315 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature