Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 12, 2026

High-throughput Gene Tagging in Trypanosoma brucei
11:26

High-throughput Gene Tagging in Trypanosoma brucei

Published on: August 12, 2016

Identification of the gene family encoding the 160-kilodalton Trypanosoma cruzi complement regulatory protein

K A Norris1, J E Schrimpf, M J Szabo

  • 1Department of Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pennsylvania 15261, USA. kan1@vms.cis.pitt.edu

Infection and Immunity
|February 1, 1997
PubMed

Insights

Trypanosoma cruzi parasites evade host defenses using a surface glycoprotein that inhibits complement activation. Researchers identified and cloned this complement regulatory protein (CRP), confirming its role in parasite survival.

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Parasitology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Trypanosoma cruzi trypomastigotes resist complement-mediated lysis, aiding survival in host bloodstream.
  • Parasite resistance is due to a surface glycoprotein inhibiting complement cascade activation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a method for purifying the T. cruzi complement regulatory protein (CRP).
  • To identify and characterize the gene encoding the CRP.
  • To confirm the protein's expression and localization on trypomastigotes.

Main Methods:

  • Monoclonal antibody production against the 160-kDa T. cruzi CRP.
  • One-step immunoaffinity purification of CRP.
  • Amino-terminal peptide sequencing and cDNA isolation.
  • Cloning the coding sequence in Escherichia coli.
  • Antibody-based detection and indirect immunofluorescence.

Main Results:

  • Homogeneous CRP was purified using a monoclonal antibody.
  • The CRP was identified as a trypomastigote-specific gene product.
  • Recombinant CRP elicited antibodies that recognized the native 160-kDa protein.
  • Indirect immunofluorescence showed uniform cell surface expression on trypomastigotes.

Conclusions:

  • The identified CRP is crucial for Trypanosoma cruzi resistance to complement.
  • This study provides a method for CRP purification and characterization.
  • Understanding CRP function offers potential targets for therapeutic intervention.

More Related Videos

Sexual Transmission of American Trypanosomes from Males and Females to Naive Mates13:55

Sexual Transmission of American Trypanosomes from Males and Females to Naive Mates

Published on: January 27, 2019

Introducing a Gene Knockout Directly Into the Amastigote Stage of Trypanosoma cruzi Using the CRISPR/Cas9 System06:13

Introducing a Gene Knockout Directly Into the Amastigote Stage of Trypanosoma cruzi Using the CRISPR/Cas9 System

Published on: July 31, 2019

Related Concept Videos

Protein Families02:47

Protein Families

Protein families are groups of homologous proteins; that is, they have similarities in amino acid sequences and three-dimensional structures. Protein families usually occur because of gene duplication, where an additional copy of a gene is inserted into the genome of an organism.   Mutations that change the amino acids but still allow the protein to be properly synthesized, will lead to new protein family members.   If these new proteins contain similar amino acids in key locations, protein...
Covalently Linked Protein Regulators02:04

Covalently Linked Protein Regulators

Proteins can undergo many types of post-translational modifications, often in response to changes in their environment. These modifications play an important role in the function and stability of these proteins. Covalently linked molecules include functional groups, such as methyl, acetyl, and phosphate groups, and also small proteins, such as ubiquitin. There are around 200 different types of covalent regulators that have been identified.
These groups modify specific amino acids in a protein.
Exon Recombination02:32

Exon Recombination

The evolution of new genes is critical for speciation. Exon recombination, also known as exon shuffling or domain shuffling, is an important means of new gene formation. It is observed across vertebrates, invertebrates, and in some plants such as potatoes and sunflowers. During exon recombination, exons from the same or different genes recombine and produce new exon-intron combinations, which might evolve into new genes. 
Exon shuffling follows “splice frame rules.” Each exon has three reading...
Covalently Linked Protein Regulators02:04

Covalently Linked Protein Regulators

Proteins can undergo many types of post-translational modifications, often in response to changes in their environment. These modifications play an important role in the function and stability of these proteins. Covalently linked molecules include functional groups, such as methyl, acetyl, and phosphate groups, and also small proteins, such as ubiquitin. There are around 200 different types of covalent regulators that have been identified.
These groups modify specific amino acids in a protein.
Complement System01:27

Complement System

The complement system is a group of approximately 20 plasma proteins that strengthen the body's defenses against infections through opsonization, inflammation, and cell lysis. Opsonization involves coating pathogens with complement proteins, making them more recognizable and facilitating phagocyte engulfment. Certain complement proteins induce inflammation that attracts immune cells to the site of infection. Cell lysis involves the destruction of pathogens through the formation of a membrane...
American Trypanosomiasis01:22

American Trypanosomiasis

Chagas disease, or American trypanosomiasis, is a vector-borne parasitic infection caused by Trypanosoma cruzi, a flagellated protozoan (kinetoplastid) of the family Trypanosomatidae. The disease is endemic in Latin America, although cases are increasingly reported worldwide due to human migration. Transmission most commonly occurs when feces of infected triatomine bugs contaminate bite wounds or mucosal surfaces; additional routes include congenital, transfusional, transplant-related, and oral...