Back to Search
Start Over
Reversion to virulence in Leishmania major correlates with expression of surface lipophosphoglycan.
- Source :
-
Molecular and biochemical parasitology [Mol Biochem Parasitol] 1993 Oct; Vol. 61 (2), pp. 207-16. - Publication Year :
- 1993
-
Abstract
- An attenuated clone of Leishmania major was produced by chemical mutagenesis with N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine and was biochemically characterized to determine the reason(s) for its loss of virulence. We found that the degree of virulence of L. major did not correlate with either the level of expression of promastigote surface protease (PSP) or with the enzymatic activity of the molecule. In contrast, the levels of lipophosphoglycan (LPG) expressed by the attenuated clone were found to be at least 6-fold less than those of virulent L. major. When the attenuated L. major was injected into BALB/c mice and allowed to revert to virulence, the degree of reversion to virulence that the parasites underwent correlated directly with the amount and form (metacyclic) of LPG expressed by the parasites. Thus, these results further implicate LPG as an important Leishmania virulence factor.
- Subjects :
- Animals
Caseins metabolism
Cell Membrane metabolism
Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel
Endopeptidases isolation & purification
Endopeptidases metabolism
Kinetics
Leishmania major drug effects
Methylnitronitrosoguanidine toxicity
Molecular Weight
Mutagenesis
Time Factors
Virulence physiology
Glycosphingolipids biosynthesis
Leishmania major metabolism
Leishmania major pathogenicity
Membrane Lipids biosynthesis
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 0166-6851
- Volume :
- 61
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Molecular and biochemical parasitology
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 8264725
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/0166-6851(93)90067-8