Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy.
Clinical and Experimental Medicine (CEM) PhD Program, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 287, 41125 Modena, Italy.
ACS Infect Dis. 2024 Sep 13;10(9):3202-3221. doi: 10.1021/acsinfecdis.4c00185. Epub 2024 Aug 1.
Recent efforts in the study of vector-borne parasitic diseases (VBPDs) have emphasized an increased consideration for preventing drug resistance and promoting the environmental safety of drugs, from the beginning of the drug discovery pipeline. The intensive use of the few available antileishmanial drugs has led to the spreading of hyper-resistant strains, resulting in a chronic burden of the disease. In the present work, we have investigated the biochemical mechanisms of resistance to antimonials, paromomycin, and miltefosine in three drug-resistant parasitic strains from human clinical isolates, using a whole-cell mass spectrometry proteomics approach. We identified 14 differentially expressed proteins that were validated with their transcripts. Next, we employed functional association networks to identify parasite-specific proteins as potential targets for novel drug discovery studies. We used SeqAPASS analysis to predict susceptibility based on the evolutionary conservation of protein drug targets across species. MATH-domain-containing protein, adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-binding cassette B2, histone H4, calpain-like cysteine peptidase, and trypanothione reductase emerged as top candidates. Overall, this work identifies new biological targets for designing drugs to prevent the development of drug resistance, while aligning with One Health principles that emphasize the interconnected health of people, animals, and ecosystems.
近年来,在研究虫媒寄生虫病(VBPDs)时,人们越来越重视从药物发现管道的一开始就考虑预防耐药性和促进药物的环境安全性。几种可用抗利什曼原虫药物的密集使用导致了高度耐药菌株的传播,从而使疾病的慢性负担更加严重。在本工作中,我们使用全细胞质谱蛋白质组学方法研究了三株来自人类临床分离株的耐药寄生虫对锑剂、巴龙霉素和米替福新的生化耐药机制。我们鉴定了 14 种差异表达蛋白,并通过其转录本进行了验证。接下来,我们利用功能关联网络来鉴定寄生虫特异性蛋白作为新的药物发现研究的潜在靶点。我们使用 SeqAPASS 分析根据蛋白质药物靶点在物种间的进化保守性来预测药物敏感性。MATH 结构域蛋白、三磷酸腺苷(ATP)结合盒 B2、组蛋白 H4、钙蛋白酶样半胱氨酸肽酶和三磷酸喋呤还原酶成为首选候选物。总的来说,这项工作为设计药物以预防耐药性的发展确定了新的生物学靶标,同时符合强调人类、动物和生态系统健康相互关联的“同一健康”原则。
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