A differential proteomics study of Caenorhabditis elegans infected with Aeromonas hydrophila.
The striking similarities between the innate defences of vertebrates and invertebrates as well as the amenability of Caenorhabditis elegans for genetic analysis, have made this free-living ground nematode a popular model system in the study of bacterial pathogenesis. Although genetic studies have brought new insights, showing the inducibility and pathogen-specificity of the immune response, there is still much to be discovered about the exact mechanisms underlying resistance to infection. In this paper a different angle was adopted to study host-pathogen interactions in C. elegans. We report the application of differential gel electrophoresis (DIGE), combined with mass spectrometry to search for proteins that are differentially synthesised in the worm after infection with the gram-negative bacterium Aeromonas hydrophila. Given the dynamic nature of an immune response, the proteome of C. elegans was investigated at three different time-points after infection. A total of 65 differential proteins were identified. This study confirms the involvement of galectins, C-type lectins and lipid binding proteins in the immunity of C. elegans. In addition a number of unknown proteins, which might represent important players of the worm's defence system, were isolated and identified. This work gives a first indication of the complex changes that occur at the protein level during infection.
Research Group of Functional Genomics and Proteomics, K.U. Leuven, Naamsestraat 59, 3000 Leuven, Belgium. annelies.bogaerts@bio.kuleuven.be
Annelies
A
Bogaerts
Liesbet
L
Temmerman
Bart
B
Boerjan
Steven J
SJ
Husson
Liliane
L
Schoofs
Peter
P
Verleyen
D016980:Aeromonas hydrophila / Q000276:immunology* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D015180:Electrophoresis, Gel, Two-Dimensional; D050556:Fatty Acid-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D037161:Galectins / Q000378:metabolism; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D016905:Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions; D006801:Humans; D007113:Immunity, Innate / Q000235:genetics; D037181:Lectins, C-Type / Q000378:metabolism; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D040901:Proteomics
D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D050556:Fatty Acid-Binding Proteins; D037161:Galectins; D037181:Lectins, C-Type