Molecular characterization and transcriptional analysis of the female-enriched chondroitin proteoglycan 2 of Toxocara canis. Issue 2 (24th April 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ma, G.X.; Zhou, R.Q.; Hu, L.; Luo, Y.L.; Luo, Y.F.; Zhu, H.H.
• Is Part Of: Journal of helminthology. Volume 92:Issue 2(2018)
• Page Start: 154
• Page End: 160
• Publication Date: 2017-04-24
• Subjects: Helminthology -- Periodicals; 592.3
• DOI: 10.1017/S0022149X17000359
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0022-149X

Abstract

Abstract: Toxocara canis is an important but neglected zoonotic parasite, and is the causative agent of human toxocariasis. Chondroitin proteoglycans are biological macromolecules, widely distributed in extracellular matrices, with a great diversity of functions in mammals. However, there is limited information regarding chondroitin proteoglycans in nematode parasites. In the present study, a female-enriched chondroitin proteoglycan 2 gene of T. canis ( Tc-cpg-2 ) was cloned and characterized. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was employed to measure the transcription levels of Tc-cpg-2 among tissues of male and female adult worms. A 485-amino-acid (aa) polypeptide was predicted from a continuous 1458-nuleotide open reading frame and designated as Tc CPG2, which contains a 21-aa signal peptide. Conserved domain searching indicated three chitin-binding peritrophin-A (CBM_14) domains in the amino acid sequence of Tc CPG2. Multiple alignment with the inferred amino acid sequences of Caenorhabditis elegans and Ascaris suum showed that CBM_14 domains were well conserved among these species. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that Tc CPG2 was closely related to the sequence of chondroitin proteoglycan 2 of A. suum . Interestingly, a high level of Tc-cpg-2 was detected in female germline tissues, particularly in the oviduct, suggesting potential roles of this gene in reproduction (e.g. oogenesis and embryogenesis) of adult T. canis . The functional roles of Tc-cpg-2 in reproduction and development in this parasite and related parasitic nematodes warrant further functional studies.