Trichomonas and GFP, the absolute misfit ...?

Autor: Geneviève Bricheux, Gérard Coffe
Rok vydání: 2005
Předmět:
Zdroj: The Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology. 52:28S-34S
ISSN: 1550-7408
1066-5234
DOI: 10.1111/j.1550-7408.2005.05202003_3_16.x
Popis: Trichomonas vaginalis belongs to a group of parasitic protists with a significant impact on human health, such as Giardia duodenalis and Entamoeba histolytica. This microorganism is able to assume a dynamical behavior towards its host; in contact with the vaginal epithelium cells, the swimming form of Trichomonas modifies its sub-membraneous cytoskeleton, and changes to an amoeboid and adherent form to the host cells. Using this adherence mechanism, Trichomonas is able to invade the vaginal mucous membrane while remaining an extracellular parasite. Thus, there is a direct link between cytoskeletal dynamics and pathogenicity. We have characterized some of the cytoskeleal proteins from Trichomonas: actin, α-actinine, coronin, and more recently gelsolin. Also, the genome sequencing of this parasite is under way, and will bring numerous data, particularly putative proteins that will need further functional identification. We are presently working to tune up some in vivo analysis methods in order to study these new proteins. The use of the GFP (green fluorescent protein) as a tag to study gene expression and protein localization becomes more and more widely reported. However, this method requires precise minimal conditions in order to satisfy the physico-chemical constraints of the chromophore and in the same time to respect the physiology of the eukaryotic cell.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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