Journal article
Apoptosis in schistosomes: Toward novel targets for the treatment of schistosomiasis
EF Lee, ND Young, NTY Lim, RB Gasser, WD Fairlie
Trends in Parasitology | Published : 2014
Abstract
Schistosomiasis is one of the world's major neglected tropical diseases. Recent advances in schistosome genomics and transcriptomics have identified components of an intrinsic, B cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2)-regulated apoptotic cell death pathway. Molecular characterization of this pathway demonstrates its similarity to that in mammals. Gene expression and functional data indicate that apoptosis is active throughout the lifecycle. Moreover, drugs that activate apoptosis in human cells kill schistosome cells, raising the prospect of developing new treatments against schistosomiasis of humans. The development of new drugs is increasingly important in the face of the potential for resistance to curr..
View full abstractGrants
Awarded by Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung
Funding Acknowledgements
W.D.F. is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Project Grant 1002227. E.F.L. and N.D.Y. are supported by an NHMRC Career Development Fellowship (1024620) and Early Career Development Fellowship (1036194) respectively. Currently, the laboratory of R.B.G. is supported mainly by funds from the Australian Research Council (ARC), NHMRC, and the Melbourne Water Corporation. Support from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (to R.B.G.), NI-EMRC Independent Research Institute Infrastructure Support Scheme (IRIISS; grant 361646), and the Victorian State Government Operational Infrastructure Support (OIS) grant is gratefully acknowledged.