[Secretome of the adult liver fluke Opisthorchis felineus].

Abstract

The opisthorchiasis caused by Opisthorchis felineus, the Siberian liver fluke remains a serious public health problem in Russia and Eastern Europe. Proteomic identification of the proteins in the excretory-secretory products (ESPs) released by O. felineus is an important key for the investigation of host-parasite interactions and understanding the mechanisms involved in parasite survival within the host. In the ESP of O. felineus we have identified 37 proteins using high-resolution proteomics approach (LTQ-FT-ICR mass spectrometer). The O. felineus secretes either excretes a complex mixture of proteins including: glycolytic enzymes (enolase, aldolase, fructose-1 ,6-bisphosphatase and other); detoxification proteins (4 isoform of glutathione S-transferases, Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase, thioredoxin peroxidase, thioredoxin); cytoskeletal proteins (beta tubulin and paramyosin); a number of proteases (cathepsin F, B1, leucin aminopeptidase 2); protease inhibitors (putative cys1 protein, leukocyte elastase inhibitor), binding proteins (ferritin, myoglobin, FABP) and other. In the O. felineus ESP we also identified Of-HDM protein belonging to a novel family "helminth defence molecules" (HDMs). The O. felineus proteins identified in this study provide necessary information for the further investigation of molecular mechanisms of opisthorchiasis pathogenesis and some of them would be of interest as potential antigens for vaccine and immunodiagnostics development and as potential new anthelmintic drug targets.