Project description:To reveal the correlation between epigenomic diversity and genomic SNVs, we first identified SNPs between T4 with other eleven Trichinella species. In total, we obtained 5,395,250 common SNVs across the twelve Trichinella species.
Project description:Dogs infected with the cardiopulmonary nematode Angiostrongylus vasorum may suffer respiratory distress and/or bleeding disorders. Descriptions of clinical signs in foxes are rare, despite high prevalence. To evaluate the impact of infection on coagulation and immune response, serum proteins from eight experimentally infected foxes before and after inoculation (day 0, 35, 84, 154) were subjected to quantitative proteomic analysis and compared to available data from dogs. The number of differentially expressed proteins compared to uninfected baseline increased with chronicity of the infection. Bone marrow proteoglycan, chitinase 3-like protein 1 and pulmonary surfactant-associated protein B were among strongly upregulated proteins. Several proteins involved in coagulation were downregulated. Enriched pathways obtained from both up- and downregulated proteins included among others ‘platelet degranulation‘ and ‘haemostasis’, and indicated both activation and suppression of coagulation. Qualitative comparison to dog data suggests some parallel serum proteomic alterations. The comparison, however, highlights that foxes have a more balanced immunopathological response to A. vasorum infection compared to dogs, facilitating parasite survival in foxes. Our findings imply that foxes may cope better with an A. vasorum infection and that A. vasorum is likely more adapted to foxes as compared to dogs, explaining the relevant role of foxes as wildlife reservoir.
Project description:Hereditary hyperplastic gingivitis (HHG) is a progressive growth of gingival tissues in foxes resulting in dental encapsulation. It is an autosomal recessive condition displaying a sex-biased penetrance, with an association with superior fur quality. The goal of this study was to explore potential molecular or cellular mechanisms underlying HHG by analysis of global gene expression patterns from Affymetrix Canine 2.0 microarrays cross-referenced. HHG affected and unaffected Vulpes vulpes gingival samples were collected either during pelting season or in the late spring after whelping season. Diagnosis of HHG was made based on early markers of the disease where red, raised, granular gingival tissue was present at the dental margins on the crowns of the teeth. RNA was extracted and hybridization on Affymetrix Canine 2 microarray.
Project description:As the most studied type of epigenetic modifications found in many taxa, DNA methylation has been confirmed to play a crucial role in transposon silencing, transcriptional regulation and thus phenotypic variation, as well as rapid adaption to changing environments. To fully understand the methylome variation in Trichinella, here, we report 12 single-base resolution methylomes of three life stages using WGBS. By comparative epigenomics, we observe that the methylome variation in Trichinella is significantly divergent and host-related. By comparative epigenomics, we observe that the methylome variation in Trichinella is significantly divergent and host-related. By comparing DNA methylation patterns between different host classes of species, we found a fraction of parasitism-related genes under epigenetic regulation, such as G-protein-coupled receptor, DNaseII and ligand-gated chloride channel. Moreover, we also reveal associations between methylation divergence and genetic basis, including nucleotide variant and structural variation.
Project description:Trichinellosis of human and other mammals was caused through the ingestion of the parasite,Trichinella spiralis,contaminated meat. It is a typical zoonotic disease that affects more than 10 million people world-wide. Parasites of Trichinella genus are unique intracellular pathogens. Adult Trichinella parasites directly release newborn larvae which invade striated muscle cells and causes diseases. In this study, we profiled the global transcriptome in the three developmental stages of T. spiralis. The transcriptomic analysis revealed the global gene expression patterns from newborn larval stage through muscle larval stage to adults. Thousands of genes with stage-specific transcriptional patterns were described and novel genes involving host-parasite interaction were identified. More than 45% of the protein-coding genes showed evidence of transcription from both sense and antisense strands which suggests the importance of RNA-mediated gene regulation in the parasite. This study presents a first deep analysis of the transcriptome of T. spiralis, providing insight information of the parasite biology.