<i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>: Genomic Diversity and Structure
<i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> is the causative agent of Chagas disease, a neglected tropical disease, and one of the most important parasitic diseases worldwide. The first genome of <i>T. cruzi</i> was sequenced in 2005, and its complexity made assembly and annotation challenging....
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2025-01-01
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| author | Alfonso Herreros-Cabello Francisco Callejas-Hernández Núria Gironès Manuel Fresno |
| author_facet | Alfonso Herreros-Cabello Francisco Callejas-Hernández Núria Gironès Manuel Fresno |
| author_sort | Alfonso Herreros-Cabello |
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| description | <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> is the causative agent of Chagas disease, a neglected tropical disease, and one of the most important parasitic diseases worldwide. The first genome of <i>T. cruzi</i> was sequenced in 2005, and its complexity made assembly and annotation challenging. Nowadays, new sequencing methods have improved some strains’ genome sequence and annotation, revealing this parasite’s extensive genetic diversity and complexity. In this review, we examine the genetic diversity, the genomic structure, and the principal multi-gene families involved in the pathogenicity of <i>T. cruzi</i>. The <i>T. cruzi</i> genome sequence is divided into two compartments: the core (conserved) and the disruptive (variable in length and multicopy gene families among strains). The disruptive region has also been described as genome plasticity and plays a key role in the parasite survival and infection process. This region comprises several multi-gene families, including trans-sialidases, mucins, and mucin-associated surface proteins (MASPs). Trans-sialidases are the most prevalent genes in the genome with a key role in the infection process, while mucins and MASPs are also significant glycosylated proteins expressed on the parasite surface, essential for its biological functions, as host–parasite interaction, host cell invasion or protection against the host immune system, in both insect and mammalian stages. Collectively, in this review, some of the most recent advances in the structure and composition of the <i>T. cruzi</i> genome are reviewed. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2c3cd3ca0b894182a1b8331c60d0e47f |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2076-0817 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Pathogens |
| spelling | doaj-art-2c3cd3ca0b894182a1b8331c60d0e47f2025-01-24T13:44:45ZengMDPI AGPathogens2076-08172025-01-011416110.3390/pathogens14010061<i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>: Genomic Diversity and StructureAlfonso Herreros-Cabello0Francisco Callejas-Hernández1Núria Gironès2Manuel Fresno3Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, SpainBloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USACentro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, SpainCentro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain<i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> is the causative agent of Chagas disease, a neglected tropical disease, and one of the most important parasitic diseases worldwide. The first genome of <i>T. cruzi</i> was sequenced in 2005, and its complexity made assembly and annotation challenging. Nowadays, new sequencing methods have improved some strains’ genome sequence and annotation, revealing this parasite’s extensive genetic diversity and complexity. In this review, we examine the genetic diversity, the genomic structure, and the principal multi-gene families involved in the pathogenicity of <i>T. cruzi</i>. The <i>T. cruzi</i> genome sequence is divided into two compartments: the core (conserved) and the disruptive (variable in length and multicopy gene families among strains). The disruptive region has also been described as genome plasticity and plays a key role in the parasite survival and infection process. This region comprises several multi-gene families, including trans-sialidases, mucins, and mucin-associated surface proteins (MASPs). Trans-sialidases are the most prevalent genes in the genome with a key role in the infection process, while mucins and MASPs are also significant glycosylated proteins expressed on the parasite surface, essential for its biological functions, as host–parasite interaction, host cell invasion or protection against the host immune system, in both insect and mammalian stages. Collectively, in this review, some of the most recent advances in the structure and composition of the <i>T. cruzi</i> genome are reviewed.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/14/1/61<i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>strainsgenomic structuremulti-gene families |
| spellingShingle | Alfonso Herreros-Cabello Francisco Callejas-Hernández Núria Gironès Manuel Fresno <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>: Genomic Diversity and Structure Pathogens <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> strains genomic structure multi-gene families |
| title | <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>: Genomic Diversity and Structure |
| title_full | <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>: Genomic Diversity and Structure |
| title_fullStr | <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>: Genomic Diversity and Structure |
| title_full_unstemmed | <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>: Genomic Diversity and Structure |
| title_short | <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>: Genomic Diversity and Structure |
| title_sort | i trypanosoma cruzi i genomic diversity and structure |
| topic | <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> strains genomic structure multi-gene families |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/14/1/61 |
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