title: Schistosome syntenin partially protects vaccinated mice against Schistosoma mansoni infection.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Schistosomiasis is a neglected tropical disease caused by several species of trematode of the genus Schistosoma. The disease affects more than 200 million people in the world and causes up to 280,000 deaths per year, besides having high morbidity due to chronic illness that damages internal organs. Current schistosomiasis control strategies are mainly based on chemotherapy, but many researchers believe that the best long-term strategy to control disease is a combination of drug treatment and immunization with an anti-schistosome vaccine. Among the most promising molecules as vaccine candidates are the proteins present in the tegument and digestive tract of the parasite.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this study, we describe for the first time Schistosoma mansoni syntenin (SmSynt) and we evaluate its potential as a recombinant vaccine. We demonstrate by real-time PCR that syntenin is mainly expressed in intravascular life stages (schistosomula and adult worms) of the parasite life cycle and, by confocal microscopy, we localize it in digestive epithelia in adult worms and schistosomula. Administration of siRNAs targeting SmSynt leads to the knock-down of syntenin gene and protein levels, but this has no demonstrable impact on parasite morphology or viability, suggesting that high SmSynt gene expression is not essential for the parasites in vitro. Mice immunization with rSmSynt, formulated with Freund's adjuvant, induces a Th1-type response, as suggested by the production of IFN-γ and TNF-α by rSmSynt-stimulated cultured splenocytes. The protective effect conferred by vaccination with rSmSynt was demonstrated by 30-37% reduction of worm burden, 38-43% reduction in the number, and 35-37% reduction in the area, of liver granulomas.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our report is the first characterization of syntenin in Schistosoma mansoni and our data suggest that this protein is a potential candidate for the development of a multi-antigen vaccine to control schistosomiasis.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), CNPq MCT, Bahia, Brazil; Department of Infectious Disease and Global Health, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Tufts University, North Grafton, Massachusetts, United States of America.
authors.forename: Barbara C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Figueiredo
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), CNPq MCT, Bahia, Brazil.
authors.forename: Natan R G
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Assis
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), CNPq MCT, Bahia, Brazil.
authors.forename: Suellen B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Morais
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), CNPq MCT, Bahia, Brazil.
authors.forename: Natasha D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Ricci
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), CNPq MCT, Bahia, Brazil; Departamento de Biointeração do Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carina S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Pinheiro
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), CNPq MCT, Bahia, Brazil; Departamento de Biologia Celular do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vicente P
authors.initials: VP
authors.lastname: Martins
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), CNPq MCT, Bahia, Brazil.
authors.forename: Rodrigo M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Bicalho
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Disease and Global Health, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Tufts University, North Grafton, Massachusetts, United States of America.
authors.forename: Akram A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Da'dara
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Disease and Global Health, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Tufts University, North Grafton, Massachusetts, United States of America.
authors.forename: Patrick J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Skelly
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), CNPq MCT, Bahia, Brazil.
authors.forename: Sergio C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Oliveira
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000947:Antigens, Helminth / Q000737:chemistry / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012550:Schistosoma mansoni / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D012555:Schistosomiasis mansoni / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000517:prevention & control; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D053676:Syntenins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D014612:Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000947:Antigens, Helminth; D053676:Syntenins; D014612:Vaccines