Galectin-8 in the experimental Trypanosoma cruzi infection

PASCUALE CA; BERTELLI A; GARCIA REVELLI H; TRIBULATI V; LEVY G; CAMPETELLA O; LEGUIZAMON M S

Congreso; Joint meeting of the Society for Glycobiology and the japanese Society of Carbohidrate research; 2014

<!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-font-charset:78; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:1 0 16778247 0 131072 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0cm; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi; mso-fareast-language:JA;} @page Section1 {size:612.0pt 792.0pt; margin:70.85pt 3.0cm 70.85pt 3.0cm; mso-header-margin:36.0pt; mso-footer-margin:36.0pt; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> Galectin-8 in the experimental Trypanosoma cruzi infection Pascuale CA1, Bertelli A1, García Rivello H.2, Tribulati V1., Levy G1, Campetella O1, and Leguizamón MS1. 1Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas -Universidad Nacional de San Martín, 2 Servicio de Patología, Hospital Italiano, Buenos Aires,  Argentina. Galectin-8 is distributed in different tissues and in the endothelium, which links it to various processes such as migration, apoptosis induction, and platelets activation, and to the role as pro-inflammation molecule. No information is available on Gal-8 in infection by Trypanosoma cruzi. We started said analysis assaying various murine infection models combined with T. cruzi strains to induce different evolution. We studied Gal-8 expression in different organs during the acute period of the infection in BALB/cJ mice, using the RA strain (DTU TcVI). Assays were conducted at 17 days post-infection (dpi) with parasitemia levels ranging 7x105-1.5x 106 trypomastigotes/ml. qRT-PCR showed a significant decrease on Gal-8 expression in infected mice hearts. Organs were analyzed in triplicate and normalized to host β-actin expression. C57BL/6J (WT) and Gal-8KO four month old males were infected with the Ac strain, (DTU TcI), which induces chronic infection (survival 90%). Parasitemia were similar between groups (followed up to 80 dpi). At four months pi, Gal-8KO mice showed exacerbated splenomegaly than that developed by infected WT mice. The weight of infected Gal8-KO mice?s spleen was significantly larger (p=0.0079) than the WT counterpart, while the heart?s and liver?s weight were similar between groups. HE-stained spleen tissue samples showed greater degree of follicular hyperplasia in Gal-8KO along with numerous secondary follicles, a higher number of centerblasts and a pronounced amount of plasmocytes, when compared to WT both infected and normal. In Gal-8KO, while follicle structure is maintained, there was important lymphocyte movement towards the red pulp. These preliminary results show, for the first time, that T. cruzi modulates Gal-8 expression. The splenomegaly seen in Gal-8KO mice could suggest the involvement of this galectin in the development of polyclonal activity, induced by T. cruzi infection.