Expression profiling of miRNAs through metacestode development in Echinococcus multilocularis

MACCHIAROLI, NATALIA; PEREZ, MATIAS; CUCHER, MARCELA; KAMENETZKY, LAURA; BREHM, KLAUS; ROSENZVIT, MARA

Congreso; S A I C . S A F E . S A B . SAP 2 0 1 9; 2019

Expression profiling of miRNAs through metacestode development in Echinococcus multilocularisThe tapeworm (cestode) Echinococcus multilocularis is the causative agent of alveolar echinococcosis, a neglected zoonotic disease. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding RNAs, are principle regulators of gene expression at the post-transcriptional level and are involved in many different biological processes. In previous work, we described the miRNA repertoire of E. multilocularis in vivo metacestode, the stage of sanitary relevance. In this work we described for the first known time the expression profile of the miRNA repertoire through metacestode development in E. multilocularis. Small RNA libraries from E. multilocularis in vivo metacestodes, in vitro metacestode vesicles and different stages of primary cells were sequenced. Then, miRNA prediction and differential expression analysis were performed. We found a high expression of a few miRNAs, such as miR-71 and miR-9, in all sequenced samples of E. multilocularis. The high expression of these miRNAs was conserved in other cestodes, suggesting that these miRNAs may play essential roles in development and survival. Differential expression analysis showed highly regulated miRNAs through metacestode development, suggesting a role in the regulation of developmental timing and/or host-parasite interaction. Some E. multilocularis miRNAs are protostome-specific or bilaterian-specific but divergent from host orthologs, and therefore could represent novel biomarkers and/or selective drug targets for echinococcosis infection. The comprehensive identification and expression analysis of E. multilocularis miRNAs can help to analyze miRNA function and identify miRNAs potentially useful for the control of alveolar echinococcosis.