title: Transcriptomes of newly-isolated Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense reveal hundreds of mRNAs that are co-regulated with stumpy-form markers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  During natural Trypanosoma brucei infections, the parasites differentiate spontaneously into a non-dividing "stumpy" form when a certain level of parasitaemia is attained. This form is metabolically adapted for rapid further differentiation into procyclic forms upon uptake by Tsetse flies.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We describe here four central Ugandan isolates of Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense that have undergone only three rodent passages since isolation from human patients. As expected, SNP analysis shows that these isolates are more closely related to each other than to the commonly used strains Lister 427, Antat1.1, and TREU927. TREU927 generally has smaller copy numbers of repeated genes than the other strains, while Lister 427 trypanosomes with a 30-year history of in vitro culture and cloning have more histone genes than the other isolates. The recently isolated trypanosomes were grown in rats, and their transcriptomes characterised. In comparison with cultured procyclic and bloodstream forms, there were increases in mRNAs encoding the stumpy-form markers ESAG9 and PIP39, with coordinated alterations in the levels of over 600 additional mRNAs. Numerous mRNAs encoding proteins of no known function were either increased or decreased. The products of the mRNAs that were increased in parallel with PIP39 included not only enzymes of procyclic-form metabolism, but also components of the translational and RNA control machineries. Many of the mRNAs that were decreased in cells with elevated PIP39 reflected reduced cell division.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These transcriptomes suggest new avenues for research into the regulation of trypanosome differentiation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Sports Science, College of Natural Sciences, Makerere University, P.O.Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda. mulindwajul@yahoo.com.|Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie der Universität Heidelberg, DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, D-69120, Heidelberg, Germany. mulindwajul@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Julius
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mulindwa
authors.affiliation: Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie der Universität Heidelberg, DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, D-69120, Heidelberg, Germany. clementine.merce@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Clémentine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mercé
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnical and Diagnostic Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity, Makerere University, P.O.Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda. matovu04@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Enock
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Matovu
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Sports Science, College of Natural Sciences, Makerere University, P.O.Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda. jenyaru@gmail.com.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Enyaru
authors.affiliation: Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie der Universität Heidelberg, DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, D-69120, Heidelberg, Germany. cclayton@zmbh.uni-heidelberg.de.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Clayton
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics*; D051381:Rats; D059467:Transcriptome / Q000235:genetics*; D016833:Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D015800:Protozoan Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger