Kohn Andrea B, Lea Jeanne M, Moroz Leonid L, Greenberg Robert M
Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, St. Augustine, 32080, USA.
Exp Parasitol. 2006 Jun;113(2):130-3. doi: 10.1016/j.exppara.2005.12.013. Epub 2006 Feb 3.
Nitric oxide (NO) is synthesized enzymatically by nitric oxide synthase (NOS). Several groups have previously presented evidence for NOS activity and immunoreactivity in several parasitic platyhelminths, including schistosomes. Here, we use 4,5-diaminofluorescein-2 diacetate (DAF-2 DA), a fluorescent indicator of NO, to detect NO in living schistosomes. In adult worms, DAF-2 fluorescence is found selectively in epithelial-like cells. Fluorescence increases when worms are incubated in L-arginine, the precursor of NO synthesis, and decreases dramatically in the presence of the NOS inhibitor N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester, indicating that predicted NO release may be NOS-dependent, and that enzymatic NO signaling pathways may play an important role in schistosome physiology.
一氧化氮（NO）由一氧化氮合酶（NOS）通过酶促反应合成。此前已有多个研究小组提供证据表明，包括血吸虫在内的几种寄生扁形虫中存在NOS活性和免疫反应性。在此，我们使用4,5-二氨基荧光素-2二乙酸酯（DAF-2 DA），一种NO的荧光指示剂，来检测活血吸虫中的NO。在成虫中，DAF-2荧光选择性地出现在上皮样细胞中。当虫体在NO合成前体L-精氨酸中孵育时，荧光增强，而在NOS抑制剂N(G)-硝基-L-精氨酸甲酯存在的情况下荧光显著减弱，这表明预测的NO释放可能依赖于NOS，并且酶促NO信号通路可能在血吸虫生理学中发挥重要作用。
