| dc.description.abstract | Lymphatic filariasis, also known as
elephantiasis, is a deleterious human disease caused by
the parasitic nematode Wuchereriabancrofti. If left
untreated, the infection can develop into elephantiasis
which can only be managed with surgical excision.
Studying the parasitology of W. bancrofti is extremely
challenging because there are significant complications in
procuring adult parasites from the lymphatic system.
Therefore, cattle filarial parasite Setariadigitata was used
as a model organism as it shares homologous
counterparts with W. bancrofti and can be easily cultured
in the laboratory.
A novel protein called SdNP (S. digitata novel protein) was
identified from S. digitata that may play a significant role
in pathogenesis. Recently, SiRNA inhibition studies showed
that inhibiting SdNP expression severely impairs adult
parasite’s locomotion, consequently leading to death of
the adult worm. The research work presented here
describes in vitro characterization of SdNP. Built on
Bioinformatic analysis, an enzyme coupled ATPase assay
was used to detect the ATPase activity of the putative
kinase motifs. Our results confirmed that SdNP is a
phosphor-protein that can bind and hydrolyze ATP to ADP
and inorganic Pi in a substrate-independent manner. In
addition, native-PAGE and gel-filtration chromatography
results showed that SdNP forms a stable tetramer in vitro.
The fact that SdNP is unique to parasitic nematodes and is
essential for the survival of adult worm suggests that
functional analysis of SdNP could pave the way to design
effective clade-specific drugs against filariasis. | |
