Vector-borne Trypanosoma brucei parasites develop in artificial human skin and persist as skin tissue forms
Abstract Transmission of Trypanosoma brucei by tsetse flies involves the deposition of the cell cycle-arrested metacyclic life cycle stage into mammalian skin at the site of the fly’s bite. We introduce an advanced human skin equivalent and use tsetse flies to naturally infect the skin with trypanos...
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Published in | Nature communications Vol. 14; no. 1; p. 7660 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
London
Nature Publishing Group
23.11.2023
Nature Portfolio |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | Abstract
Transmission of
Trypanosoma brucei
by tsetse flies involves the deposition of the cell cycle-arrested metacyclic life cycle stage into mammalian skin at the site of the fly’s bite. We introduce an advanced human skin equivalent and use tsetse flies to naturally infect the skin with trypanosomes. We detail the chronological order of the parasites’ development in the skin by single-cell RNA sequencing and find a rapid activation of metacyclic trypanosomes and differentiation to proliferative parasites. Here we show that after the establishment of a proliferative population, the parasites enter a reversible quiescent state characterized by slow replication and a strongly reduced metabolism. We term these quiescent trypanosomes skin tissue forms, a parasite population that may play an important role in maintaining the infection over long time periods and in asymptomatic infected individuals. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 2041-1723 2041-1723 |
DOI: | 10.1038/s41467-023-43437-2 |