INVESTIGADORES
ALTCHEH Jaime Marcelo
artículos
Título:
Mapping antigenic motifs in the trypomastigote small surface antigen from Trypanosoma cruzi.
Autor/es:
BALOUZ V; CÁMARA MDE L; CÁNEPA GE; CARMONA SJ; VOLCOVICH R; GONZALEZ N; ALTCHEH J; AGÜERO F; BUSCAGLIA CA
Revista:
CLINICAL AND VACCINE IMMUNOLOGY
Editorial:
AMER SOC MICROBIOLOGY
Referencias:
Lugar: Washington; Año: 2015 vol. 22 p. 304 - 312
ISSN:
1556-6811
Resumen:
The trypomastigote small surface antigen (TSSA) is a mucin-like molecule from
Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiological agent of Chagas disease, which displays amino
acid polymorphisms in parasite isolates. TSSA expression is restricted to the
surface of infective cell-derived trypomastigotes, where it functions as an
adhesin and engages surface receptors on the host cell as a prerequisite for
parasite internalization. Previous results have established TSSA-CL, the isoform
encoded by the CL Brener clone, as an appealing candidate for use in
serology-based diagnostics for Chagas disease. Here, we used a combination of
peptide- and recombinant protein-based tools to map the antigenic structure of
TSSA-CL at maximal resolution. Our results indicate the presence of different
partially overlapping B-cell epitopes clustering in the central portion of
TSSA-CL, which contains most of the polymorphisms found in parasite isolates.
Based on these results, we assessed the serodiagnostic performance of a
21-amino-acid-long peptide that spans TSSA-CL major antigenic determinants, which
was similar to the performance of the previously validated glutathione
S-transferase (GST)-TSSA-CL fusion molecule. Furthermore, the tools developed for
the antigenic characterization of the TSSA antigen were also used to explore
other potential diagnostic applications of the anti-TSSA humoral response in
Chagasic patients. Overall, our present results provide additional insights into
the antigenic structure of TSSA-CL and support this molecule as an excellent
target for molecular intervention in Chagas disease.