Utilizing Quantitative Proteomics to Identify Species-Specific Protein Therapeutic Targets for the Treatment of Leishmaniasis.

Leishmaniasis is a tropical disease caused by parasites, which are transmitted through the bites of infected sandflies. We focused on the emergence of leishmaniasis in Thailand caused by a species (). Treatment by chemotherapy is not effective against . Hence, we intended to solve this issue using a proteomics approach to investigate protein profiles and analysis for the identification of antigenic proteins from , , and . Using principal component analysis (PCA), protein profile comparisons indicated that different species of are different at the protein level. Proteomics analysis identified 6099 proteins. Among these proteins, 1065 proteins were used for further analysis. There were 16 proteins that were promising candidates for therapeutic aspects as they were abundantly expressed and common to all species. analysis of protein's antigenicity revealed that eight proteins had the potential for the development of antigenic molecules. Protein profile information and these antigenic proteins may play key roles in the pathogeny of leishmaniasis and can be used as novel therapeutic targets against leishmaniasis in the future.