Identification and localization of a gonadotropin-releasing hormone-related neuropeptide in Biomphalaria, an intermediate host for schistosomiasis

Theodor Bilharz Research Institute

Bibliographic Information

Authors: Rosa-Casillas M.; de Jesús P.M.; Vicente Rodríguez L.C.; Habib M.R.; Croll R.P.; Miller M.W.

Journal: Journal of Comparative Neurology

Publisher: John Wiley and Sons Inc

Publication Date: 27 January 2021

Volume / Issue: Volume 529 / Issue 9

Pages: 2347–2361

ISSN: 219967

DOI: 10.1002/cne.25099

Scopus: View on Scopus

PubMed: 33368267

Document Type: Article

Access: All Open Access; Green Open Access

Authors and Affiliations

Rosa-Casillas M., Institute of Neurobiology and Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico; de Jesús P.M., Institute of Neurobiology and Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico; Vicente Rodríguez L.C.; Habib M.R., Medical Malacology Department, Theodor Bilharz Research Institute, Giza, Egypt; Croll R.P., Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada; Miller M.W., Institute of Neurobiology and Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico

Abstract

Freshwater snails of the genus Biomphalaria serve as obligatory hosts for the digenetic trematode Schistosoma mansoni, the causative agent for the most widespread form of intestinal schistosomiasis. Within Biomphalaria, S. mansoni larvae multiply and transform into the cercariae form that can infect humans. Trematode development and proliferation is thought to be facilitated by modifications of host behavior and physiological processes, including a reduction of reproduction known as “parasitic castration.” As neuropeptides participate in the control of reproduction across phylogeny, a neural transcriptomics approach was undertaken to identify peptides that could regulate Biomphalaria reproductive physiology. The present study identified a transcript in Biomphalaria alexandrina that encodes a peptide belonging to the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) superfamily. The precursor and the predicted mature peptide, pQIHFTPDWGNN-NH2 (designated Biom-GnRH), share features with peptides identified in other molluscan species, including panpulmonates, opisthobranchs, and cephalopods. An antibody generated against Biom-GnRH labeled neurons in the cerebral, pedal, and visceral ganglia of Biomphalaria glabrata. GnRH-like immunoreactive fiber systems projected to all central ganglia. In the periphery, immunoreactive material was detected in the ovotestis, oviduct, albumen gland, and nidamental gland. As these structures serve crucial roles in the production, transport, nourishment, and encapsulation of eggs, disruption of the GnRH system of Biomphalaria could contribute to reduced reproductive activity in infected snails. © 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC.

Keywords

Biomphalaria alexandrina; Biomphalaria glabrata; pond snail; pulmonate mollusk; Schistosoma mansoni; Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Biomphalaria; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone; Host-Parasite Interactions; Neuropeptides; Schistosomiasis mansoni; gonadorelin; neuropeptide; Article; bacterium identification; cephalopod; control strategy; controlled study; genetic code; genetic transcription; immunoreactivity; larval stage; nonhuman; opisthobranch; Panpulmonata; phylogeny; protein localization; schistosomiasis; animal; chemistry; genetics; host parasite interaction; metabolism; physiology

Citation Information

Scopus Citations: 4

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