Flatworm-specific transcriptional regulators promote the specification of tegumental progenitors in Schistosoma mansoni .

Autor:	Wendt GR; Department of Pharmacology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas., Collins JN; Department of Pharmacology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas., Pei J; Department of Biophysics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas., Pearson MS; Center for Biodiscovery and Molecular Development of Therapeutics, Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia., Bennett HM; Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, United Kingdom., Loukas A; Center for Biodiscovery and Molecular Development of Therapeutics, Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia., Berriman M; Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, United Kingdom., Grishin NV; Department of Biophysics, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas., Collins JJ 3rd; Department of Pharmacology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	ELife [Elife] 2018 Mar 20; Vol. 7. Date of Electronic Publication: 2018 Mar 20.
DOI:	10.7554/eLife.33221
Abstrakt:	Schistosomes infect more than 200 million people. These parasitic flatworms rely on a syncytial outer coat called the tegument to survive within the vasculature of their host. Although the tegument is pivotal for their survival, little is known about maintenance of this tissue during the decades schistosomes survive in the bloodstream. Here, we demonstrate that the tegument relies on stem cells (neoblasts) to specify fusogenic progenitors that replace tegumental cells lost to turnover. Molecular characterization of neoblasts and tegumental progenitors led to the discovery of two flatworm-specific zinc finger proteins that are essential for tegumental cell specification. These proteins are homologous to a protein essential for neoblast-driven epidermal maintenance in free-living flatworms. Therefore, we speculate that related parasites (i.e., tapeworms and flukes) employ similar strategies to control tegumental maintenance. Since parasitic flatworms infect every vertebrate species, understanding neoblast-driven tegumental maintenance could identify broad-spectrum therapeutics to fight diseases caused by these parasites. Competing Interests: GW, JC, JP, MP, HB, AL, MB, NG, JC No competing interests declared (© 2018, Wendt et al.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
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