Vaccination with Recombinant Oncosphere Antigens Reduces the Susceptibility of Sheep to Infection with Taenia Multiceps

Overview

Journal Int J Parasitol

Specialty Parasitology

Date 2007 Dec 28

PMID 18160069

Citations 28

Authors

Charles Gauci

Gulay Vural

Taraneh Oncel

Antonio Varcasia

Veronica Damian

Craig T Kyngdon

Philip S Craig

Garry A Anderson

Marshall W Lightowlers

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Taenia multiceps is a cestode parasite, the larval stage of which encysts in the brain of sheep, goats and cattle causing an often fatal condition. The parasite also causes zoonotic infections in humans. Homologues of the recombinant oncosphere vaccine antigens from Taenia ovis and other Taenia species were identified in T. multiceps. Sequencing of the associated T. multiceps genes and cloning of the encoding mRNA has revealed conserved features in the genes and proteins. The T. multiceps oncosphere proteins, designated Tm16 and Tm18, contain a predicted secretory signal and fibronectin type III domain. The recombinant Tm16 and Tm18 proteins were successfully expressed in Escherichia coli as fusion proteins with GST. The antigens, formulated with Quil A adjuvant, were tested in a vaccine trial in sheep. The antigens stimulated immunity in sheep against challenge infection with T. multiceps eggs. Five of nine control sheep died due to a challenge infection with T. multiceps whereas none of 20 vaccinated animals died as a result of the parasite challenge (P=0.001). In addition, vaccination with the Tm16 protein, or Tm16 plus Tm18, induced significant protection against the number of parasites encysting in the brain as a result of the challenge infection (P=0.023, P=0.015, respectively). No clear relationship was apparent between the level of specific serum antibody in vaccinated animals and either the presence or absence of parasites or the number of parasites that occurred in some of the vaccinated animals. We believe this study is the first description of recombinant vaccine-related investigations for T. multiceps. The recombinant oncosphere antigens identified may allow development of effective vaccination strategies against T. multiceps infection in sheep. They raise the potential for the development of a combined vaccine with the Echinococcus granulosus EG95 antigen for prevention of T. multiceps as well as preventing the transmission of cystic hydatid disease.

Citing Articles

A Ferritin-Based Eg95 Nanoparticle Vaccine Adjuvanted with pCpG Eliciting Robust Immune Responses Against Cystic Echinococcosis in Mice Model.

Gao X, Zhu X, Liu X, Zhou C, Shang Y, Wu T Int J Nanomedicine. 2025; 20():309-325.

PMID: 39802377 PMC: 11725278. DOI: 10.2147/IJN.S499938.

Designing multi-epitope vaccines against Echinococcus granulosus: an in-silico study using immuno-informatics.

Khan J, Sadiq A, Alrashed M, Basharat N, Mohani S, Shah T BMC Mol Cell Biol. 2024; 25(1):29.

PMID: 39736511 PMC: 11686936. DOI: 10.1186/s12860-024-00524-6.

Treatment and management of coenurosis by Taenia multiceps: field data from outbreaks in endemic regions and literature review.

Abbas I, Tamponi C, Madau G, Cavallo L, Varcasia A, Scala A Parasit Vectors. 2024; 17(1):335.

PMID: 39123250 PMC: 11312392. DOI: 10.1186/s13071-024-06430-2.

Biochemical Properties and Immunogenic Epitopes of Glutathione S-Transferase as a Vaccine Target: Study.

Khazaei S, Dalimi A, Pirestani M, Ghafarifar F Iran J Parasitol. 2024; 19(1):61-74.

PMID: 38654954 PMC: 11033539. DOI: 10.18502/ijpa.v19i1.15205.

Cystic echinococcosis in northern Tanzania: a pilot study in Maasai livestock-keeping communities.

Tamarozzi F, Kibona T, de Glanville W, Mappi T, Adonikamu E, Salewi A Parasit Vectors. 2022; 15(1):396.

PMID: 36307877 PMC: 9616617. DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05518-x.

References

Lightowlers M, Flisser A, Gauci C, Heath D, Jensen O, Rolfe R . Vaccination against cysticercosis and hydatid disease. Parasitol Today. 2000; 16(5):191-6. DOI: 10.1016/s0169-4758(99)01633-6. View

Varcasia A, Lightowlers M, Cattoli G, Cancedda G, Canu S, Garippa G . Genetic variation within Taenia multiceps in Sardinia, Western Mediterranean (Italy). Parasitol Res. 2006; 99(5):622-6. DOI: 10.1007/s00436-006-0179-y. View

Corcoran C, Ryan L, Senchaudhuri P, Mehta C, Patel N, Molenberghs G . An exact trend test for correlated binary data. Biometrics. 2001; 57(3):941-8. DOI: 10.1111/j.0006-341x.2001.00941.x. View

Chow C, Gauci C, Cowman A, Lightowlers M . A gene family expressing a host-protective antigen of Echinococcus granulosus. Mol Biochem Parasitol. 2001; 118(1):83-8. DOI: 10.1016/s0166-6851(01)00373-5. View

Gauci C, Lightowlers M . Molecular cloning of genes encoding oncosphere proteins reveals conservation of modular protein structure in cestode antigens. Mol Biochem Parasitol. 2003; 127(2):193-8. DOI: 10.1016/s0166-6851(03)00005-7. View

Lightowlers M, Colebrook A, Gauci C, Gauci S, Kyngdon C, Monkhouse J . Vaccination against cestode parasites: anti-helminth vaccines that work and why. Vet Parasitol. 2003; 115(2):83-123. DOI: 10.1016/s0304-4017(03)00202-4. View

Sabattani S, Marliani A, Roncaroli F, Zucchelli M, Zini A, Calbucci F . Cerebral coenurosis. Case illustration. J Neurosurg. 2004; 100(5):964. DOI: 10.3171/jns.2004.100.5.0964. View

Flisser A, Gauci C, Zoli A, Martinez-Ocana J, Garza-Rodriguez A, Dominguez-Alpizar J . Induction of protection against porcine cysticercosis by vaccination with recombinant oncosphere antigens. Infect Immun. 2004; 72(9):5292-7. PMC: 517464. DOI: 10.1128/IAI.72.9.5292-5297.2004. View

Bradford M . A rapid and sensitive method for the quantitation of microgram quantities of protein utilizing the principle of protein-dye binding. Anal Biochem. 1976; 72:248-54. DOI: 10.1016/0003-2697(76)90527-3. View

10.

Edwards G, Herbert I . Observations on the course of Taenia multiceps infections in sheep: clinical signs and post-mortem findings. Br Vet J. 1982; 138(6):489-500. DOI: 10.1016/s0007-1935(17)30934-x. View

11.

Rickard M, Williams J . Hydatidosis/cysticercosis: immune mechanisms and immunization against infection. Adv Parasitol. 1982; 21:229-96. DOI: 10.1016/s0065-308x(08)60277-8. View

12.

McManus D, Knight M, Simpson A . Isolation and characterisation of nucleic acids from the hydatid organisms, Echinococcus spp. (Cestoda). Mol Biochem Parasitol. 1985; 16(3):251-66. DOI: 10.1016/0166-6851(85)90068-4. View

13.

Smith D, Johnson K . Single-step purification of polypeptides expressed in Escherichia coli as fusions with glutathione S-transferase. Gene. 1988; 67(1):31-40. DOI: 10.1016/0378-1119(88)90005-4. View

14.

Johnson K, Harrison G, Lightowlers M, OHoy K, Cougle W, Dempster R . Vaccination against ovine cysticercosis using a defined recombinant antigen. Nature. 1989; 338(6216):585-7. DOI: 10.1038/338585a0. View

15.

Maina C, Riggs P, Grandea 3rd A, Slatko B, Moran L, Tagliamonte J . An Escherichia coli vector to express and purify foreign proteins by fusion to and separation from maltose-binding protein. Gene. 1988; 74(2):365-73. DOI: 10.1016/0378-1119(88)90170-9. View

16.

Puissant C, Houdebine L . An improvement of the single-step method of RNA isolation by acid guanidinium thiocyanate-phenol-chloroform extraction. Biotechniques. 1990; 8(2):148-9. View

17.

Pau A, Perria C, Turtas S, Brambilla M, Viale G . Long-term follow-up of the surgical treatment of intracranial coenurosis. Br J Neurosurg. 1990; 4(1):39-43. DOI: 10.3109/02688699009000680. View

18.

Waterkeyn J, Lightowlers M, Coppel R, Cowman A . Characterization of the gene family encoding a host-protective antigen of the tapeworm Taenia ovis. Mol Biochem Parasitol. 1995; 73(1-2):123-31. DOI: 10.1016/0166-6851(94)00104-u. View

19.

Harrison G, Heath D, Dempster R, Gauci C, Newton S, Cameron W . Identification and cDNA cloning of two novel low molecular weight host-protective antigens from Taenia ovis oncospheres. Int J Parasitol. 1996; 26(2):195-204. DOI: 10.1016/0020-7519(95)00097-6. View

20.

Lightowlers M, Rolfe R, Gauci C . Taenia saginata: vaccination against cysticercosis in cattle with recombinant oncosphere antigens. Exp Parasitol. 1996; 84(3):330-8. DOI: 10.1006/expr.1996.0121. View