生物谷報道：利什曼原蟲可以引起廣泛的臨床疾病,。最近,，科研人員報道了對兩種利什曼原蟲的基因組測序：嬰兒利什曼原蟲和巴西利什曼原蟲,。這一研究結果發(fā)表在最新一期的《自然－遺傳學》雜志上,。
科研人員將這兩種新測序的利什曼原蟲基因組與已報道的碩大利什曼原蟲基因組進行了比較,，發(fā)現三者之間存在顯著的保守性,，僅有約200個基因存在微分分布的差異,。但是,，與已報道的利什曼原蟲基因組不同的是，在巴西利什曼原蟲的基因組中存在RNA干擾通路組件,、端粒連接轉座元件和逆轉座子,。此外，研究人員還發(fā)現,，假基因的形成和基因丟失是造成不同利什曼原蟲基因組差異的主要原因,。這些在不同利什曼原蟲基因組上分布不同的基因編碼的蛋白質，在宿主與病原體的相互作用,，以及寄生蟲在巨噬細胞中生存等生理活動中具有重要作用,。這些基因可能是研發(fā)疫苗的良好候選者，它們也可能對于發(fā)現利什曼原蟲如何躲避免疫系統(tǒng)有幫助,，而且它們還能讓科學家更有效地預測疫苗是否成功,。
Figure 1 - Chromosome 32 of L. major showing the positions of genes with a differential distribution between the three Leishmania species analyzed.
The organization of chromosome 32 is shown schematically; both strands containing long, non-overlapping gene clusters2. Genes that are restricted to only one or two of the three Leishmania species are not concentrated in the subtelomeric regions or at the breakpoint between polycistronic transcription units, as seen in other kinetoplastid parasites5, but are distributed more evenly along the chromosome. Most gene differences are a result of pseudogene formation rather than insertion or deletion of new sequences.
原文出處：
Nature Genetics 39, 839 - 847 (2007)
Published online: 17 June 2007 | doi:10.1038/ng2053
Comparative genomic analysis of three Leishmania species that cause diverse human disease - pp839 - 847
Christopher S Peacock, Kathy Seeger, David Harris, Lee Murphy, Jeronimo C Ruiz, Michael A Quail, Nick Peters, Ellen Adlem, Adrian Tivey, Martin Aslett, Arnaud Kerhornou, Alasdair Ivens, Audrey Fraser, Marie-Adele Rajandream, Tim Carver, Halina Norbertczak, Tracey Chillingworth, Zahra Hance, Kay Jagels, Sharon Moule, Doug Ormond, Simon Rutter, Rob Squares, Sally Whitehead, Ester Rabbinowitsch, Claire Arrowsmith, Brian White, Scott Thurston, Frédéric Bringaud, Sandra L Baldauf, Adam Faulconbridge, Daniel Jeffares, Daniel P Depledge, Samuel O Oyola, James D Hilley, Loislene O Brito, Luiz R O Tosi, Barclay Barrell, Angela K Cruz, Jeremy C Mottram, Deborah F Smith & Matthew Berriman
doi:10.1038/ng2053
Abstract - Comparative genomic analysis of three : Leishmania: species that cause diverse human disease | Full Text - Comparative genomic analysis of three Leishmania species that cause diverse human disease | PDF (721 KB) - Comparative genomic analysis of three Leishmania species that cause diverse human disease | Supplementary information
