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Evolutionary diversification of the trypanosome haptoglobin-haemoglobin receptor from an ancestral haemoglobin receptor.

ABSTRACT: The haptoglobin-haemoglobin receptor of the African trypanosome species, Trypanosoma brucei, is expressed when the parasite is in the bloodstream of the mammalian host, allowing it to acquire haem through the uptake of haptoglobin-haemoglobin complexes. Here we show that in Trypanosoma congolense this receptor is instead expressed in the epimastigote developmental stage that occurs in the tsetse fly, where it acts as a haemoglobin receptor. We also present the structure of the T. congolense receptor in complex with haemoglobin. This allows us to propose an evolutionary history for this receptor, charting the structural and cellular changes that took place as it adapted from a role in the insect to a new role in the mammalian host.

SUBMITTER: Lane-Serff H

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4889325 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Evolutionary diversification of the trypanosome haptoglobin-haemoglobin receptor from an ancestral haemoglobin receptor.

Lane-Serff Harriet H MacGregor Paula P Peacock Lori L Macleod Olivia Js OJ Kay Christopher C Gibson Wendy W Higgins Matthew K MK Carrington Mark M

eLife 20160415

The haptoglobin-haemoglobin receptor of the African trypanosome species, Trypanosoma brucei, is expressed when the parasite is in the bloodstream of the mammalian host, allowing it to acquire haem through the uptake of haptoglobin-haemoglobin complexes. Here we show that in Trypanosoma congolense this receptor is instead expressed in the epimastigote developmental stage that occurs in the tsetse fly, where it acts as a haemoglobin receptor. We also present the structure of the T. congolense rece ...[more]

PMID: 27083048

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Project description:Trypanosoma brucei requires haemoglobin for survival in the mammalian bloodstream. Haptoglobin (Hp), a host protein known to bind haemoglobin, was determined as a key component for haemoglobin acquisition by the parasite. Here, we investigated the impact of haptoglobin deficiency on T. brucei brucei infection and the parasite´s capacity to internalise haemoglobin in the Hp-/- mouse model. The infected Hp-/- mice exhibited normal disease progression, with minimal weight loss and no apparent organ pathology similarly to control mice. While the proteomic profile of mouse sera significantly changed in response to T. b. brucei, no differences in the infection response markers of blood plasma have been observed between Hp-/- and control Black mice. Similarly, very few quantitative differences have been observed between the proteomes of parasites harvested from Hp-/- and Black mice, entailing both endogenous proteins and internalised host proteins. While haptoglobin was indeed absent from parasites isolated from Hp-/-mice, haemoglobin peptides were unexpectedly detected in parasites from both Hp-/- and Black mice. This was verified by western blotting, EM immunolabeling of parasites cryosections, and analytical quantification of haem cofactors in the parasites extracts. Combined, the data support the Hp dispensability for haemoglobin internalisation by T. b. brucei during infection in mice. To further explore this phenomenon, we have generated T. b. brucei haptoglobin-haemoglobin receptor (HpHbR) knock-outs and used them to infect Hp-/- and control mice. The HpHbR-knock-out trypanosomes internalised significantly less haemoglobin from Hp-/- mice compared to those isolated from Black mice strongly suggesting that T. b. brucei employs an HpHbR-independent Hp-mediated mode for haemoglobin internalisation. Our study reveals a so-far hidden flexibility of haemoglobin acquisition by T. b. brucei and offers novel insights into alternative haemoglobin uptake pathways.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Phylogenetic analyses of the bacterial genomes based on the simple classification in core- genes and accessory genes pools could offer an incomplete view of the evolutionary processes, of which some are still unresolved. A combined strategy based on stratified phylogeny and ancient molecular polymorphisms is proposed to infer detailed evolutionary reconstructions by using a large number of whole genomes. This strategy, based on the highest number of genomes available in public databases, was evaluated for improving knowledge of the ancient diversification of E. coli. This staggered evolutionary scenario was also used to investigate whether the diversification of the ancient E. coli lineages could be associated with particular lifestyles and adaptive strategies. RESULTS:Phylogenetic reconstructions, exploiting 6220 available genomes in Genbank, established the E. coli core genome in 1023 genes, representing about 20% of the complete genome. The combined strategy using stratified phylogeny plus molecular polymorphisms inferred three ancient lineages (D, EB1A and FGB2). Lineage D was the closest to E. coli root. A staggered diversification could also be proposed in EB1A and FGB2 lineages and the phylogroups into these lineages. Several molecular markers suggest that each lineage had different adaptive trajectories. The analysis of gained and lost genes in the main lineages showed that functions of carbohydrates utilization (uptake of and metabolism) were gained principally in EB1A lineage, whereas loss of environmental-adaptive functions in FGB2 lineage were observed, but this lineage showed higher accumulated mutations and ancient recombination events. The population structure of E. coli was re-evaluated including up to 7561 new sequenced genomes, showing a more complex population structure of E. coli, as a new phylogroup, phylogroup I, was proposed. CONCLUSIONS:A staggered reconstruction of E. coli phylogeny is proposed, indicating evolution from three ancestral lineages to reach all main known phylogroups. New phylogroups were confirmed, suggesting an increasingly complex population structure of E. coli. However these new phylogroups represent < 1% of the global E. coli population. A few key evolutionary forces have driven the diversification of the two main E. coli lineages, metabolic flexibility in one of them and colonization-virulence in the other.

Dataset Information

Evolutionary diversification of the trypanosome haptoglobin-haemoglobin receptor from an ancestral haemoglobin receptor.

Publications

Evolutionary diversification of the trypanosome haptoglobin-haemoglobin receptor from an ancestral haemoglobin receptor.

Similar Datasets

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