Project description:Geographical distinct virulent Babesia bovis strains have similar gene expression changes as they go through attenuation. Pair end RNA-sequencing reads on three biological replicate sample pairs of virulent parent and attenuated derivative Babesia bovis strain isolated in Argentina.
Project description:To understand the effect of Babesia infection on Rhipicephalus microplus hemocyte gene expression, we performed high throughput RNA-sequencing using samples collected from Rhipicephalus microplus uninfected tick hemolymph and infected with either Babesia bigemina or Babesia bovis. We evaluated gene expression differences that may be attributed to tick immune defense to babesial infection.
Project description:Babesia parasites transition between a mammalian host, where they cause babesiosis, and the tick vector that transmits them. This transition provides an environmental signal resulting in altered gene expression allowing the completion of the parasite’s life cycle. A comparison of the different life stages that occur within mammalian and tick hosts can provide insight into the adaptation of Babesia to these different environments. In this study, we used RNA-Seq to compare gene expression between Babesia bovis blood stages and tick derived kinetes.
Project description:Bovine babesiosis is a tick-borne disease that poses a significant economic threat to cattle industries in tropical and subtropical areas, and Babesia bovis is the most virulent causative agent of bovine babesiosis. This apicomplexan parasite infects erythrocytes of cattle causing severe hemolytic disease, and animals that survive acute infections become persistently infected for life. Young cattle (< 6 months of age) are resistant to infection while adult cattle (>1 year of age) are highly susceptible and succumb to acute infection; however, the immunological mechanisms associated with the age-resistance remain unclear. Protective host immunity involves peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) including natural killer (NK) and T cells, and activated macrophages that act to control the pathogen. In this study, we examined the transcriptional signatures of PBMCs from adult cattle (>1.5 years old) experimentally infected with the B. bovis virulent strain S74-T3Bo. Transcriptional signatures evident during the acute phase of babesiosis were categorized into immune-related and non-immune genes. We identified both upregulated and downregulated genes, with fold changes ranging from 2 to 263-fold. We discuss our findings in the context of immune responses to acute disease as a mechanism for adult host survival, with a focus on the molecular functions and biological processes involved in the response to B. bovis infection. In this RNA-Seq analysis, we identified genes related to the immune system, including cytokines and chemokines, complement, cell signaling pathways and surface molecules that may play a role in the recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns. In addition, non-immune genes potentially involved in cell proliferation, cell migration, development, energy production, protein-protein interactions, molecular transport, and flagella assembly were also identified.
