Comparative proteomic analysis of metabolically labelled proteins from Plasmodium falciparum isolates with different adhesion properties

The virulence of Plasmodium falciparum relates in part to the cytoadhesion characteristics of parasitized erythrocytes but the molecular basis of the different qualitative and quantitative binding phenotypes is incompletely understood. This paucity of information is due partly to the difficulty in working with membrane proteins, the variant nature of these surface antigens and their relatively low abundance. To address this two-dimensional (2D) protein profiles of closely related, but phenotypically different laboratory strains of P. falciparum have been characterized using proteomic approaches. Since the mature erythrocyte has no nucleus and no protein synthesis capability, metabolic labelling of proteins was used to selectively identify parasite proteins and increase detection sensitivity. A small number of changes (less than 10) were observed between four different P. falciparum laboratory strains with distinctive cytoadherence properties using metabolic labelling, with more parasite protein changes found in trophozoite iRBCs than ring stage. The combination of metabolic labelling and autoradiography can therefore be used to identify parasite protein differences, including quantitative ones, and in some cases to obtain protein identifications by mass spectrometry. The results support the suggestion that the membrane protein profile may be related to cytoadherent properties of the iRBCs. Most changes between parasite variants were differences in iso-electric point indicating differential protein modification rather than the presence or absence of a specific peptide

Designing and optimizing new antimicrobial peptides: all targets are not the same

Because the resistance of microorganisms to the available antibiotics is a growing healthcare problem worldwide, the search for new antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) that provide useful therapeutic options has been increasing in importance. Many initial candidates have had to be discarded after having advanced to the preclinical and clinical stages. This has led to substantial losses in terms of time and money. For that reason, the essential characteristics of AMPs (i.e. their activity, selectivity, stability in physiological conditions and low production cost) must be considered in their design. In addition, peptides could be active against several kinds of cells with activity and selectivity resulting from interaction with multiple target cell components, which sometimes are present in mammalian cells as well. Thus, the cellular composition is important in the AMP-target cell interaction and must be considered in the design of AMPs, too. This review describes general aspects of AMP design, limitations concerning their therapeutic application, and optimization strategies for overcoming such limitations. © 2019, © 2019 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor and Francis Group

Functional, immunological and three-dimensional analysis of chemically synthesisedsporozoite peptides as components of a fully-effective antimalarial vaccine

Our ongoing search for a fully-effective vaccine against the Plasmodium falciparum parasite (causing the most lethal form ofhuman malaria) has been focused on identifying and characterising proteins' amino acid sequences (high activity binding peptides orHABPs) involved in parasite invasion of red blood cells (RBC) by the merozoite and hepatocytes by the sporozoite. Many such merozoiteHABPs have been recognised and molecularly and structurally characterised; however, native HABPs are immunologically silentsince they do not induce any immune response or protection against P. falciparum malaria infection and they have to be structurallymodified to allow them to fit perfectly into immune system molecules.A deeply structural analysis of these conserved merozoite HABPs and their modified analogues has led to rules or principles becomingrecognised for constructing a logical and rational methodology for a minimal subunit-based, multi-epitope, multi-stage, chemicallysynthesisedvaccine. The same in-depth analysis of the most relevant sporozoite proteins involved in sporozoite cell-traversal and hepatocyteinvasion as well as the hepatic stage is shown here.Specifically modifying these HABPs has resulted in a new set of potential pre-erythrocyte targets which are able to induce high, longlastingantibody titres in Aotus monkeys, against their corresponding recombinant proteins and the complete parasite native molecules.This review shows how these rules may be applied against the first stage of parasite invasion (i.e. the sporozoite) to mount the first line ofdefence against the malarial parasite, which may indeed be the most effective one. Our results strongly support including some of thesemodified sporozoite HABPs in combination with the previously-described modified merozoite HABPs for obtaining the aforementionedfully-protective, multiepitope, multi-stage, minimal subunit-based, chemically-synthesized, antimalarial vaccine. © 2011 Bentham Science Publishers

Synthetic peptides from two Pf sporozoite invasion-associated proteins specifically interact with HeLa and HepG2 cells

Two recently described molecules have been associated with sporozoite traversal ability and hepatocyte entry: sporozoite invasion-associated proteins (SIAP)-1 and -2. The HeLa and HepG2 cell binding ability of synthetic peptides spanning the whole SIAP-1 and -2 sequences has been studied in the search for identifying these proteins' functionally active specific regions. Twelve HepG-2 and seventeen HeLa cell high-activity binding peptides (HABPs) have been identified in SIAP-1, 8 of them having high specific binding affinity for both cell lines. Four HepG2 HABPs and two HeLa HABPs have been identified in SIAP-2, one of them interacting with both HeLa and HepG2 cells. SIAP-1 and SIAP-2 HABPs bound specifically and saturably to heparin sulfate and chondroitin sulfate-type membrane receptors on host cells. Circular dichroism assays have shown high ?-helix content in SIAP-1 and SIAP-2 HABP secondary structure. Immunofluorescence analysis has revealed that specific peptides against SIAP proteins are highly immunogenic in mice and that anti-SIAP-1 and -2 antibodies recognize the native protein in Plasmodium falciparum sporozoites. Polymorphism studies have shown that a most SIAP-1 and -2 HABPs are conserved among P. falciparum strains. Our results have suggested that SIAP-1 and -2 participate in host-pathogen interactions during cell-traversal and hepatocyte invasion and highlighted the relevance of the ongoing identification and study of potentially new molecules when designing a fully protective antimalarial vaccine. © 2011 Elsevier Inc

Identifying and characterising PPE7 (Rv0354c) high activity binding peptides and their role in inhibiting cell invasion

"This study was aimed at characterising the PPE7 protein from the PE/PPE protein family. The presence and transcription of the rv0354c gene in the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex was determined and the subcellular localisation of the PPE7 protein on mycobacterial membrane was confirmed by immunoelectron microscope. Two peptides were identified as having high binding activity (HABPs) and were tested in vitro regarding the invasion of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv. HABP 39224 inhibited invasion in A549 epithelial cells and U937 macrophages by more than 50%, whilst HABP 39225 inhibited invasion by 40% in U937 cells. HABP 39224, located in the protein’s C-terminal region, has a completely conserved amino acid sequence in M. tuberculosis complex species and could be selected as a base peptide when designing a subunit-based, anti-tuberculosis vaccine. © 2017, Springer Science+Business Media New York.

Intimate molecular interactions of P. falciparum merozoite proteins involved in invasion of red blood cells and their implications for vaccine design

A first step in the development of a logical and rational methodology for obtaining vaccines against the threatening effects of malaria has been a thorough analysis of the intimate molecular interactions of the molecules involved in P. falciparum's invasion of red blood cells (RBC) including secondary and 3D structure determination of some of them. Blocking the interactions could specifically be induced by activating the immune system with these molecules. Developing a completely effective vaccine against the parasite's blood stage must therefore involve a similar number of conserved high-activity bending peptides (HABPs) derived from some of the proteins that are directly involved in RBC invasion being blocked by the immune system. Data on the number of HABPs, their presence, processed and released fragments, network interactions, and merozoite-membrane-rafts shows the complexity of the processes involved in merozoite invasion of RBCs

Receptor–ligand and parasite protein–protein interactions in Plasmodium vivax: Analysing rhoptry neck proteins 2 and 4

Elucidating receptor–ligand and protein–protein interactions represents an attractive alternative for designing effective Plasmodium vivax control methods. This article describes the ability of P. vivax rhoptry neck proteins 2 and 4 (RON2 and RON4) to bind to human reticulocytes. Biochemical and cellular studies have shown that two PvRON2- and PvRON4-derived conserved regions specifically interact with protein receptors on reticulocytes marked by the CD71 surface transferrin receptor. Mapping each protein fragment's binding region led to defining the specific participation of two 20 amino acid-long regions selectively competing for PvRON2 and PvRON4 binding to reticulocytes. Binary interactions between PvRON2 (ligand) and other parasite proteins, such as PvRON4, PvRON5, and apical membrane antigen 1 (AMA1), were evaluated and characterised by surface plasmon resonance. The results revealed that both PvRON2 cysteine-rich regions strongly interact with PvAMA1 Domains II and III (equilibrium constants in the nanomolar range) and at a lower extent with the complete PvAMA1 ectodomain and Domains I and II. These results strongly support that these proteins participate in P. vivax's complex invasion process, thus providing new pertinent targets for blocking P. vivax merozoites' specific entry to their target cells. © 2018 John Wiley and Sons Lt

Conserved high activity binding peptides are involved in adhesion of two detergent-resistant membrane-associated merozoite proteins to red blood cells during invasion

"Detergent resistant membranes (DRMs) of Plasmodium falciparum merozoites contain a large number of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored proteins that have been implicated in interactions between merozoites and red blood cells (RBCs). In this study, two cysteine-rich proteins anchored by GPI to merozoite DRMs (Pf92 and Pf113) were studied with the aim of identifying regions actively involved in RBC invasion. By means of binding assays, high-activity binding peptides (HABPs) with a large number of binding sites per RBC were identified in Pf92 and Pf113. The nature of the RBC surface receptors for these HABPs was explored using enzyme-treated RBCs and cross-linking assays. Invasion inhibition and immunofluorescence localization studies suggest that Pf92 and Pf113 are involved in RBC invasion and that their adhesion to RBCs is mediated by such HABPs. Additionally, polymorphism and circular dichroism studies support their inclusion in further studies to design components of an antimalarial vaccine. © 2010 American Chemical Society.

Peptides derived from Mycobacterium tuberculosis Rv2301 protein are involved in invasion to human epithelial cells and macrophages

The specific function of putative cut2 protein (or CFP25), encoded by the Rv2301 gene from Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv, has not been identified yet. The aim of this study was to assess some of CFP25 characteristics and its possible biological role in Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv invasion process to target cells. Molecular assays indicated that the gene encoding Rv2301 is present and transcribed in M. tuberculosis complex strains. The presence of Rv2301 protein over the bacilli surface was confirmed by Western blot and immunoelectron microscopy analyses, using goats sera inoculated with synthetic peptides derived from Rv2301 protein. Receptor-ligand binding assays with carcinomic human alveolar basal epithelial cells (A549) and macrophages derived from human histolytic lymphoma monocytes (U937) allowed us to identify five high activity binding peptides (HABPs) in both cell lines, and two additional HABPs only in A549 cells. U937 HABPs binding interactions were characterized by saturation assays, finding dissociation constants (K d) within the nanomolar range and positive cooperativity (n H and gt; 1). Inhibition assays were performed to assess the possible biological role of Rv2301 identified HABPs, finding that some of them were able to inhibit invasion at a 5 ?M concentration, compared with the cytochalasin control. On the other hand, HABPs, and especially HABP 36507 located at the N-terminus of the protein, facilitated the internalization of fluorescent latex beads into A549 cells. These findings are of vital importance for the rational selection of Rv2301 HABPs, to be included as components of an antituberculosis vaccine. © 2011 Springer-Verlag