A systematic bioinformatics approach for large-scale identification and characterization of host-pathogen shared...

Area of Science:

• Bioinformatics
• Genomics
• Molecular Biology

Background:

• Biology is generating vast amounts of data through high-throughput omics technologies.
• Biological databases offer public access to extensive data for knowledge discovery.
• Increasing sequence data for pathogens, like viruses, is crucial due to their impact on human health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and apply a systematic bioinformatics approach for identifying and characterizing shared sequences between hosts and pathogens.
• To analyze the "share-ome" between Flaviviridae viruses and humans.

Main Methods:

• A large-scale, systematic bioinformatics approach was employed.
• Identification and characterization of shared nonamer sequences between host (human) and pathogen (Flaviviridae).

Main Results:

• A total of 2430 nonamers showed 100% identity between Flaviviridae and humans.
• These shared sequences mapped to 16,946 Flaviviridae and 7506 human protein sequences across 125 Flaviviridae species.
• Hepatitis C virus (Hepacivirus C) accounted for the majority (68%) of shared sequences, followed by West Nile, dengue, and Zika viruses.

Conclusions:

• Mapping host-pathogen share-omes has significant implications for vaccine and drug design, diagnostics, and disease surveillance.
• The presented workflow is adaptable for various pathogens, including viral, bacterial, and parasitic agents.
• Characterization of shared sequences offers structural-functional insights into host-pathogen interactions.