Human serum lyses Trypanosoma brucei by triggering uncontrolled swelling of the parasite lysosome.
Trypanosoma brucei brucei infects a wide range of mammals, but is unable to infect humans because this subspecies is lysed by normal human serum (NHS). The phenotype of cellular lysis is debated. For some authors the lysosome undergoes osmotic swelling due to massive influx of chloride ions from the cytoplasmic compartment, but others describe multiple small cytoplasmic vacuoles and general swelling of the cellular body. Using population-level imaging of live immobilized trypanosomes throughout the lysis process, we report that specific swelling of the lysosome is a genuine and major characteristic of NHS-mediated lysis and that this phenotype is independent of the strain of trypanosomes and of NHS aging or damaging. Thus, irrespective of experimental conditions NHS reproducibly induced the swelling of the parasite lysosome.
Vanhollebeke
Benoit
B
Laboratory of Molecular Parasitology, IBMM, Université Libre de Bruxelles (U.L.B.), 12, rue des Professeurs Jeener et Brachet, B-6041 Gosselies, Belgium.
Lecordier
Laurence
L
Perez-Morga
David
D
Amiguet-Vercher
Amelia
A
Pays
Etienne
E
D000818:Animals; D000075944:Apolipoprotein L1; D001053:Apolipoproteins / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D001798:Blood Proteins / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008075:Lipoproteins, HDL / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D008247:Lysosomes / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D044967:Serum / Q000276:immunology*; D014346:Trypanosoma brucei brucei / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism
C108666:APOL1 protein, human; D000075944:Apolipoprotein L1; D001053:Apolipoproteins; D001798:Blood Proteins; D008075:Lipoproteins, HDL