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Current Biology : CB Sep 2023In this Quick guide, Thomas Whelan and Naomi Fast introduce the microsporidia: obligate intracellular parasites with the most extremely reduced genomes known in...
In this Quick guide, Thomas Whelan and Naomi Fast introduce the microsporidia: obligate intracellular parasites with the most extremely reduced genomes known in eukaryotes.
Topics: Microsporidia; Eukaryota
PubMed: 37751700
DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.06.076 -
Current Protocols May 2024Nematodes are naturally infected by the fungal-related pathogen microsporidia. These ubiquitous eukaryotic parasites are poorly understood, despite infecting most types...
Nematodes are naturally infected by the fungal-related pathogen microsporidia. These ubiquitous eukaryotic parasites are poorly understood, despite infecting most types of animals. Identifying novel species of microsporidia and studying them in an animal model can expedite our understanding of their infection biology and evolution. Nematodes present an excellent avenue for pursuing such work, as they are abundant in the environment and many species are easily culturable in the laboratory. The protocols presented here describe how to isolate bacterivorous nematodes from rotting substrates, screen them for microsporidia infection, and molecularly identify the nematode and microsporidia species. Additionally, we detail how to remove environmental contaminants and generate a spore preparation of microsporidia from infected samples. We also discuss potential pitfalls and provide suggestions on how to mitigate them. These protocols allow for the identification of novel microsporidia species, which can serve as an excellent starting point for genomic analysis, determination of host specificity, and infection characterization. © 2024 The Authors. Current Protocols published by Wiley Periodicals LLC. Basic Protocol 1: Gathering samples Support Protocol 1: Generating 10× and 40× Escherichia coli OP50 and seeding NGM plates Basic Protocol 2: Microsporidia screening, testing for Caenorhabditis elegans susceptibility, and sample freezing Basic Protocol 3: DNA extraction, PCR amplification, and sequencing to identify nematode and microsporidia species Basic Protocol 4: Removal of contaminating microbes and preparation of microsporidia spores Support Protocol 2: Bleach-synchronizing nematodes.
Topics: Animals; Microsporidia; Nematoda; Caenorhabditis elegans; DNA, Fungal; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Microsporidiosis; Spores, Fungal
PubMed: 38727641
DOI: 10.1002/cpz1.1035 -
The Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology Apr 2024The microbiome is the collection of microbes that are associated with a host. Microsporidia are intracellular eukaryotic parasites that can infect most types of animals.... (Review)
Review
The microbiome is the collection of microbes that are associated with a host. Microsporidia are intracellular eukaryotic parasites that can infect most types of animals. In the last decade, there has been much progress to define the relationship between microsporidia and the microbiome. In this review, we cover an increasing number of reports suggesting that microsporidia are common components of the microbiome in both invertebrates and vertebrates. These microsporidia infections can range from mutualistic to pathogenic, causing several physiological phenotypes, including death. Infection with microsporidia often causes a disruption in the normal microbiome, with both increases and decreases of bacterial, fungal, viral, and protozoan species being observed. This impact on the microbiome can occur through upregulation and downregulation of innate immunity as well as morphological changes to tissues that impact interactions with these microbes. Other microbes, particularly bacteria, can inhibit microsporidia and have been exploited to control microsporidia infections. These bacteria can function through regulating immunity, secreting anti-microsporidia compounds, and, in engineered versions, expressing double-stranded RNA targeting microsporidia genes. We end this review by discussing potential future directions to further understand the complex interactions between microsporidia and the other members of the microbiome.
PubMed: 38561869
DOI: 10.1111/jeu.13025 -
The Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology May 2024Microsporidia and Apicomplexa are eukaryotic, single-celled, intracellular parasites with huge public health and economic importance. Typically, these parasites are... (Review)
Review
Microsporidia and Apicomplexa are eukaryotic, single-celled, intracellular parasites with huge public health and economic importance. Typically, these parasites are studied separately, emphasizing their uniqueness and diversity. In this review, we explore the huge amount of genomic data that has recently become available for the two groups. We compare and contrast their genome evolution and discuss how their transitions to intracellular life may have shaped it. In particular, we explore genome reduction and compaction, genome expansion and ploidy, gene shuffling and rearrangements, and the evolution of centromeres and telomeres.
PubMed: 38785208
DOI: 10.1111/jeu.13033 -
PLoS Pathogens Jul 2023Microsporidia are a large phylum of intracellular parasites that can infect most types of animals. Species in the Nematocida genus can infect nematodes including...
Microsporidia are a large phylum of intracellular parasites that can infect most types of animals. Species in the Nematocida genus can infect nematodes including Caenorhabditis elegans, which has become an important model to study mechanisms of microsporidia infection. To understand the genomic properties and evolution of nematode-infecting microsporidia, we sequenced the genomes of nine species of microsporidia, including two genera, Enteropsectra and Pancytospora, without any previously sequenced genomes. Core cellular processes, including metabolic pathways, are mostly conserved across genera of nematode-infecting microsporidia. Each species encodes unique proteins belonging to large gene families that are likely used to interact with host cells. Most strikingly, we observed one such family, NemLGF1, is present in both Nematocida and Pancytospora species, but not any other microsporidia. To understand how Nematocida phenotypic traits evolved, we measured the host range, tissue specificity, spore size, and polar tube length of several species in the genus. Our phylogenetic analysis shows that Nematocida is composed of two groups of species with distinct traits and that species with longer polar tubes infect multiple tissues. Together, our work details both genomic and trait evolution between related microsporidia species and provides a useful resource for further understanding microsporidia evolution and infection mechanisms.
Topics: Animals; Microsporidia; Phylogeny; Nematoda; Caenorhabditis elegans; Genomics
PubMed: 37471459
DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1011510 -
Microbiology Spectrum Feb 2024Microsporidia are obligate intracellular eukaryotic parasites with an extremely broad host range. They have both economic and public health importance. Ploidy in...
Microsporidia are obligate intracellular eukaryotic parasites with an extremely broad host range. They have both economic and public health importance. Ploidy in microsporidia is variable, with a few species formally identified as diploid and one as polyploid. Given the increase in the number of studies sequencing microsporidian genomes, it is now possible to assess ploidy levels across all currently explored microsporidian diversity. We estimate ploidy for all microsporidian data sets available on the Sequence Read Archive using k-mer-based analyses, indicating that polyploidy is widespread in Microsporidia and that ploidy change is dynamic in the group. Using genome-wide heterozygosity estimates, we also show that polyploid microsporidian genomes are relatively homozygous, and we discuss the implications of these findings on the timing of polyploidization events and their origin.IMPORTANCEMicrosporidia are single-celled intracellular parasites, distantly related to fungi, that can infect a broad range of hosts, from humans all the way to protozoans. Exploiting the wealth of microsporidian genomic data available, we use k-mer-based analyses to assess ploidy status across the group. Understanding a genome's ploidy is crucial in order to assemble it effectively and may also be relevant for better understanding a parasite's behavior and life cycle. We show that tetraploidy is present in at least six species in Microsporidia and that these polyploidization events are likely to have occurred independently. We discuss why these findings may be paradoxical, given that Microsporidia, like other intracellular parasites, have extremely small, reduced genomes.
Topics: Humans; Microsporidia; Phylogeny; Evolution, Molecular; Genome, Fungal; Polyploidy
PubMed: 38214524
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.03669-23 -
Microorganisms Apr 2024spp. and Microsporidia are opportunistic microorganisms with remarkable zoonotic transmission potential due to their capacity to infect humans and animals. The aim of...
spp. and Microsporidia are opportunistic microorganisms with remarkable zoonotic transmission potential due to their capacity to infect humans and animals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of these microorganisms in stool samples of animal and human origin. In total, 369 stool samples (205 from human patients with diarrhea and 164 of animal origin) were included in the study. spp. and Microsporidia presence were determined by using multiplex nested PCR. Positive results were analyzed by using Sanger sequencing of the amplicon, utilizing BLASTN and ClustalX software to confirm identification. spp. were found in 0.97% and 4.26% of human and animal samples, respectively. was detected in human and animal stools in 6.82% and 3.05% of the samples, respectively. No associations were found when analyzing the presence of spp. and and the demographic and clinical variables of patients and animals. This study demonstrates the presence of these microorganisms in human and animal samples from different species, and the most interesting findings are the detection of spp. in pets (e.g., rodents) that are not usually included in this type of study, and the identification of in patients with diarrhea without underlying disease.
PubMed: 38792745
DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms12050918 -
EMBO Reports Dec 2023Disrupting the small RNA pathway and chromatin-modifying enzymes in C. elegans often leads to a mortal germline (Mrt) phenotype, characterized by progressive sterility...
Disrupting the small RNA pathway and chromatin-modifying enzymes in C. elegans often leads to a mortal germline (Mrt) phenotype, characterized by progressive sterility observed over multiple generations at elevated temperature. This phenotype arises from the inheritance of aberrant epigenetic memory across generations. In this issue of EMBO Reports, Frézal and colleagues reported that, while in standard laboratory environment C. elegans wild isolates exhibit the Mrt phenotype, sterility does not occur when the worms are exposed to naturally associated bacteria and microsporidia. Excitingly, diet-induced epigenetic memory may persist for multiple generations. This suggests intriguing diet-gene interactions in modulating nongenetic inheritance, potentially shaping the evolutionary trajectory of the animals.
Topics: Animals; Caenorhabditis elegans; Epigenesis, Genetic; Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; Phenotype; Infertility
PubMed: 37983676
DOI: 10.15252/embr.202358318