Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 12, 2025
Author Spotlight: Advancing Syphilis Research — Innovations in Treponema pallidum Cultivation and Genetic Engineering
Published on: January 24, 2025
Insight into the invasion process and immune-protective evaluation of Tp0971, a membrane lipoprotein from Treponema
Xiaohong Zhang1, Junxia Duan1, Yali Wang2
1Institute of Pathogenic Biology and Key Laboratory of Special Pathogen Prevention and Control of Hunan Province, Department of Clinical Laboratory Medicine of the First Affiliated Hospital, Hengyang Medical College, University of South China , Hengyang, China.
Importance:
The past two decades have seen a worldwide resurgence in infections caused by Treponema pallidum (T. pallidum) subsp. pallidum, the syphilis spirochete. The well-recognized capacity of the syphilis spirochete for early dissemination and immune evasion has earned it the designation "the stealth pathogen." There are many hurdles to studying syphilis pathogenesis, most notably the difficulty of culturing and genetically manipulating T. pallidum, as well as the absence of an effective vaccine for T. pallidum prevention. T. pallidum infection in humans is a complex and lengthy process. In this study, we investigated the invasion process and the function of the infection-dependent antigen Tp0971 as an immunogen to inhibit the dissemination of T. pallidum in an animal infection model. This enables a better understanding of the specific pathogenic mechanism of this pathogen, syphilis pathogenesis, and vaccine research.
