< Back to previous page

Project

Molecular adaption of the tsetse fly transmitted African trypanosome to the intradermal micro-environment in the mammalian host.

Sleeping sickness is caused by a unicellular parasite, the trypanosome, that is transmitted by the blood feeding tsetse fly, a species native to the African continent. When left untreated, the disease will result in coma and death. Existing therapies are limited and have serious limitations justifying the continuous search for efficient and complementary alternatives. Here, the natural transmission of the parasite through injection into the host skin by the tsetse fly is a crucial life cycle stage that has not been explored so far for targeting the parasite developmental progress in the mammalian host. The host skin is a specific micro-environment where the inoculated parasites have to survive and adapt to establish an infection and to colonize the host blood. Yet, our current knowledge of the trypanosome population and its development at this crucial early host-parasite interface is highly limited. During this project we will determine the differences in morphological and molecular properties of the early skin residing trypanosome versus other developmental stages. From this analysis we will select proteins that are specifically linked to the early skin parasite population. These proteins will be individually targeted to determine which ones are crucial for survival and development of these parasite at the biting site. This basic knowledge can eventually lead to a new strategy to prevent transmission.
Date:1 Jan 2018 →  31 Aug 2020
Keywords:PARASITOLOGY, PARASITE
Disciplines:Microbiology, Veterinary medicine
Project type:Collaboration project