title: Toxoplasma gondii: the immunogenic and protective efficacy of recombinant ROP2 and ROP4 rhoptry proteins in murine experimental toxoplasmosis.
abstract: Toxoplasmosis is a one of the most world-wide spread zoonosis representing a very serious clinical and veterinary problem. In the presented study, we evaluated the protective efficacy of a combined recombinant ROP2 and ROP4 subunit vaccine in a chronic Toxoplasma gondii infection in mice. The recombinant ROP2 (rROP2) and ROP4 (rROP4) proteins were cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli and then used for the immunization of C3H/HeJ mice. Both antigens generated a strong systemic mixed Th1/Th2 response polarized towards IgG1 antibody isotype. In contrast to rROP2 stimulating only the specific IL-2 release, rROP4 and crude toxoplasma lysate antigen (TLA) used as a source of native forms of the parasite proteins induced significant proliferation of splenocytes and specific production of IFN-gamma as well as IL-2, the Th1-type cytokines. Challenge of rROP2 and rROP4-vaccinated mice with cysts of low virulent T. gondii DX strain resulted in a partial protection effect with a significantly lower brain parasites load when compared with control animals. In the immunized group of mice the brain cysts number was reduced by nearly 46% as was determined in two independent experiments. These results suggest that, similar to ROP2, rhoptry protein ROP4 could be a very good candidate for future anti-T. gondii multicomponent vaccine based on the recombinant forms of different parasite proteins.
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunoparasitology, University of Lodz, 90-237 Lodz, Poland.
authors.forename: Bozena
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dziadek
authors.forename: Justyna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gatkowska
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Brzostek
authors.forename: Jaroslaw
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dziadek
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dzitko
authors.forename: Henryka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dlugonska
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000097:blood; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008297:Male; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016052:Protozoan Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D011817:Rabbits; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D013154:Spleen / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D014122:Toxoplasma / Q000276:immunology*; D014124:Toxoplasmosis, Animal / Q000517:prevention & control*; D022223:Vaccines, Subunit / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007376:Interleukin-2; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; D016052:Protozoan Vaccines; C090555:ROP 2 protein, Toxoplasma gondii; C516362:ROP4 protein, Toxoplasma gondii; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D022223:Vaccines, Subunit; D007371:Interferon-gamma