Two variant surface glycoprotein genes distinguish between different substrains of Trypanosoma brucei gambiense.
Trypanosoma brucei gambiense differs from other T. brucei subspecies in the stability and conservation of its bloodstream form antigenic repertoire. Two variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) cDNA clones corresponding to the antigens U1 and L2 were isolated from T. b. gambiense bacteriophage lambda gt11 expression libraries and characterized. A third VSG cDNA clone, P1, was also examined. The L2 and U1 VSG genes are present in a large number of T. b. gambiense stocks isolated over a thirty-year period from different geographical areas of Africa, suggesting that they are stably maintained in the T. b. gambiense genome. These probes may be useful in epidemiological studies of Gambian sleeping sickness to differentiate between T. b. gambiense isolates.
Barnes
D A
DA
Molecular Parasitology-Intercampus Program, School of Pharmacy, University of California, San Francisco.
Mottram
J
J
Selkirk
M
M
Agabian
N
N
D000818:Animals; D001345:Autoradiography; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004247:DNA / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005828:Genetics, Population; D009549:Nigeria; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D012313:RNA / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014346:Trypanosoma brucei brucei / Q000235:genetics; D014347:Trypanosoma brucei gambiense / Q000235:genetics*; D014643:Variant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma / Q000235:genetics*
D014643:Variant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma; D012313:RNA; D004247:DNA