Project description:Whole sporozoite proteins of Eimeria acervulina were prepared and analyzed by 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) followed by Western blotting using immune sera specific to E. tenella, E. acervulina, or E. necatrix.
Project description:Intraspecific phenotypic variation markedly influences the damage that parasites inflict on their hosts. Such is the case for strains of Eimeria maxima, a costly enteric parasite of poultry, where strain APU-1 exhibits greater pathogenicity than APU-2. Here, we examined how these strains differ as oocysts mature to the fully-sporulated stage. We performed mi-croscopy and RNA-Sequencing on oocysts at regular intervals (6-12 hours) during sporulation. Although each strain underwent parallel development, APU-1 initially approached maturation more slowly. Each strain achieved full sporu-lation and similar transcription profiles by hour 36, after which strains appeared to diverge. These differences may in-fluence subsequent virulence. Candidate biomarkers of oocyst viability include 58 genes contributing at least 1,000 Transcripts Per Million throughout sporulation. Many genes resemble constitutively expressed genes also important to Eimeria acervulina. Mature and immature oocysts differentially express certain genes. Expression of some such bi-omarkers appears strain-specific. These data illuminate processes that may generally underlie sporulation in Eimeria and related genera, such as Cyclospora, and identify biological processes which differentiate among them. Drivers of devel-opment and senescence may provide tools to assess the viability of oocysts, which would greatly benefit the poultry industry and food safety applications.
Project description:Global transcriptional responses in duodenal intestinal epithelia of chickens following primary and secondary Eimeria acervulina infections.
Project description:We constructed genetically modified Eimeria acervulina that expressed VP2 protein, a protective antigen from infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV), on the surface or in the microneme of sporozoites. we identified the transgenic E. acervulina expressing VP2 by RT-qPCR,LC-MSMS and Werstern Blot.
