Humoral and cellular immune responses induced by the urease-derived peptide Jaburetox in the model organism Rhodnius prolixus

LEONARDO L. FRUTTERO; NATALIA R. MOYETTA; AUGUSTO F. UBERTI; MATHEUS V. COSTE GRAHL; FERNANDA C. LOPES; VALQUIRIA BROLL; DENISE FEDER; CELIA R. CARLINI

PARASITES AND VECTORS

BIOMED CENTRAL LTD

Lugar: Londres; Año: 2016 vol. 9

1756-3305

bstractBackground: Although the entomotoxicity of plant ureases has been reported almost 20 years ago, theirinsecticidal mechanism of action is still not well understood. Jaburetox is a recombinant peptide derived fromone of the isoforms of Canavalia ensiformis (Jack Bean) urease that presents biotechnological interest since itis toxic to insects of different orders. Previous studies of our group using the Chagas disease vector andmodel insect Rhodnius prolixus showed that the treatment with Jack Bean Urease (JBU) led to hemocyteaggregation and hemolymph darkening, among other effects. In this work, we employed cell biology andbiochemical approaches to investigate whether Jaburetox would induce not only cellular but also humoralimmune responses in this species.Results: The findings indicated that nanomolar doses of Jaburetox triggered cation-dependent, in vitro aggregationof hemocytes of fifth-instar nymphs and adults. The use of specific eicosanoid synthesis inhibitors revealed that