{"database":"GEO","file_versions":[{"headers":{"Content-Type":["application/json"]},"body":{"files":{"Other":["ftp://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/series/GSE306nnn/GSE306990/"]},"type":"primary"},"statusCode":"OK","statusCodeValue":200}],"scores":null,"additional":{"omics_type":["Transcriptomics"],"species":["Tritrichomonas foetus"],"gds_type":["Expression profiling by high throughput sequencing"],"full_dataset_link":["https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/query/acc.cgi?acc=GSE306990"],"repository":["GEO"],"entry_type":["GSE"],"additional_accession":[]},"is_claimable":false,"name":"True cyst formation in Tritrichomonas foetus: a survival and drug-resistance strategy redefining protozoan biology","description":"Tritrichomonas foetus, a protozoan parasite responsible for bovine and feline trichomonosis, has traditionally been considered to form only pseudocysts. Here, we reveal that T. foetus produces true cysts characterized by chitin like components-rich, fibrillar walls, cytoskeletal reorganization, and resistance to detergent treatment. Cystogenesis is induced by environmental stresses such as nutrient deprivation, alkaline pH mimicking the bovine preputial milieu, and exposure to metronidazole, a frontline antiparasitic drug. This encystation enhances parasite survival and suggests a novel drug-resistance mechanism. Transcriptomic profiling identifies key pathways involved in cyst wall biosynthesis and regulation, including Myb-like transcription factors and calcium/calmodulin dependent kinases. Encysted parasites also undergo DNA replication without cytokinesis, suggesting a strategy for rapid multiplication through multiple fission upon excystation. Our findings fundamentally reshape the understanding of T. foetus biology, highlight a critical stage in its transmission cycle, and have significant implications for therapeutic and diagnostic strategies in veterinary parasitology","dates":{"publication":"2026/03/23"},"accession":"GSE306990","cross_references":{"GSM":["GSM9213554","GSM9213555","GSM9213556","GSM9213551","GSM9213552","GSM9213553"],"GPL":["36200"],"GSE":["306990"],"taxon":["Tritrichomonas foetus"]}}