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Updated: Aug 14, 2026

Investigating the Phagocytosis of Leishmania using Confocal Microscopy
Published on: July 29, 2021
Subcellular localization of an extracellular serine protease in Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis
R E Silva-Lopez1, J A Morgado-Díaz, C R Alves
1Laboratório de Bioquímica de Proteínas e Peptídeos, Departamento de Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. rlopez@ioc.fiocruz.br
Abstract:
Extracellular proteolytic activity was detected in a Leishmania ( L.) amazonensis culture supernatant and a 56-kDa protein was purified using (NH4)2SO4 precipitation followed by affinity chromatography on aprotinin-agarose. A rabbit serum obtained against the 56-kDa extracellular serine protease was used in order to analyze its location in L. ( L.) amazonensis parasites. Immunocytochemistry studies revealed that the enzyme is mainly found in the flagellar pocket and cytoplasmic vesicles of promastigote forms, whereas in amastigotes, it is located in electron-dense structures resembling megasomes. These results indicate that the 56-kDa serine protease is released into the extracellular environment through the flagellar pocket; and its intracellular location suggests either a correlated enzymatic activity or intracellular trafficking.
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