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J Parasit Dis Diagn Ther 2017
Volume 2 Issue 3
Tropical Medicine 2017
Page 55
September 7-8, 2017 | Edinburgh, Scotland
4
th
International Conference on
Tropical Medicine, Infectious Diseases & Public Health
CHOOSING SIDES: STRENGTHENING
GLOSSINA ON THE STRUGGLE AGAINST
TRYPANOSSOMA SPP
Sara T. Zúquete
a
, Luis Alfaro Cardoso
a
, Afonso P. Basto
a
, Sofia VanHarten
b
and Maria Odete Afonso
c
a
University of Lisboa (UL), Portugal
b
Lusofona University of Humanities and Technologies, Portugal
c
University of Nova, Portugal.
T
setse flies (Glossina spp.) are responsible for the
transmission of the flagellated protozoa Trypanosoma
spp. causing animal African trypanosomiasis (Nagana)
and Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT). The later is
endemic in 30 countries in sub-Saharan Africa and it is
estimated that 60 million people are at risk of infection.
Climate and environmental changes are likely to increase its
incidence as well as its geographical distribution. Strategies
undertaken to fight African trypanosomiasis will have to
be multidisciplinary and articulated between the different
components that comprise its biological system.
The development of molecular biology techniques has opened
up new possibilities with respect to vector control. Despite
the fact that the direct transgenesis of flies is hampered by
tsetse´s adenotrofic viviparity, paratransgenesis emerged as
an alternative.
In the present study, the coding sequences for the trypanocydal
proteins attacin and defensin were cloned in plasmid vectors
for expression in Sodalis glossinidius, an endosymbiont
of Glossina spp. Thermal shock, chemical treatment and
electroporation were applied for the symbiont transformation
in order to express the recombinant proteins. Transformation
was achieved by a combination of methods which was, for the
best of our knowledge, successfully achieved for the first time.
The expression of the recombinant proteins was evaluated
indirectly by inhibition of E. coli growth upon co-culture
with transformed S. glossinidius. The expression of attacin
and defensin is now being further studied by real-time PCR
and western blot. Protein purification is being attempted for
the in vitro evaluation of trypanocydal effect.
J Parasit Dis Diagn Ther 2017