Acta tropica最新文献

{"title":"Natural occurrence of Wolbachia in Phlebotominae (Diptera: Psychodidae) in Montes Claros, Minas Gerais - Brazil","authors":"Amanda Andrade do Rosário ,&nbsp;Laura Posada-Lopez ,&nbsp;Marília Fonseca Rocha ,&nbsp;Guilherme Loureiro Werneck ,&nbsp;Fredy Galvis-Ovallos","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107920","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107920","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Visceral leishmaniasis is a zoonosis of high epidemiological relevance, caused by protozoan parasites of the Leishmaniinae subfamily, mainly of the <em>Leishmania</em> genus and transmitted by hematophagous phlebotomine sand flies. Vector-borne disease control faces significant challenges, and innovative strategies towards the vector – such as the use of the endosymbiont bacteria <em>Wolbachia</em> – have gained prominence for their ability to manipulate the reproduction of their hosts and modulate their immunity, reducing pathogen transmission. However, little is known about natural <em>Wolbachia</em> infection in the sand fly population. This study aimed to assess the circulation of <em>Wolbachia</em> in sand flies from Montes Claros, a visceral leishmaniasis-endemic area in Minas Gerais, Brazil. A total of 1.191 females <em>Lutzomyia longipalpis</em> were analyzed, and <em>Wolbachia</em> DNA was detected in 30 samples (2.5%), with a homogeneous presence among the points sampled. DNA sequences revealed a single strain, <em>w</em>Pup, that has not been previously described in sand flies. The positive <em>Wolbachia</em> samples were also tested for <em>Leishmania</em> spp, however, no DNA was detected.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107920"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145562369","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comment on “When microbiology is missing: A prospective observational study on empirical first-line antibiotic treatment (FLAT) in Ethiopia”","authors":"Shyam Sundar Sah","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107936","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107936","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107936"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145706884","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Predicted future climate scenarios impact survival and immune response but not Plasmodium vivax infection in Anopheles aquasalis (Diptera, Culicidae), the primary vector of coastal Central and South America and the Caribbean Islands","authors":"Arineia Soares Silva ,&nbsp;Rejane Lima Leda ,&nbsp;Wilsandrei Cella ,&nbsp;Victor Irungu Mwangi ,&nbsp;Rosa Amélia Gonçalves Santana ,&nbsp;Alexandre Vilhena Silva-Neto ,&nbsp;Maria de Nazaré Paula da Silva ,&nbsp;Rogério Santos Pereira ,&nbsp;Stefanie Costa Pinto Lopes ,&nbsp;Gisely Cardoso Melo ,&nbsp;Paulo Filemon Paolucci Pimenta ,&nbsp;Fernando Fonseca Almeida-Val ,&nbsp;Adalberto Luis Val ,&nbsp;Djane Clarys Baía-da-Silva ,&nbsp;Wuelton Marcelo Monteiro","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107930","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107930","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div><em>Anopheles aquasalis</em> mosquito, a key <em>Plasmodium vivax</em> vector in coastal Latin America, can be sensitive to environmental shifts. This study assessed the impact of IPCC AR5-projected climate scenarios on mosquito survival, infectivity, and immunity. Four scenarios were simulated in digitally controlled climate rooms: a forest-based environmental control and three IPCC projections - (i) Scenario RCP 4.5 (light, +1.0°C and +250 ppm CO2 on current scenario); RCP Scenario 6.0 (intermediate, +2.5°C and +400 ppm CO2 over current scenario) and RCP Scenario 8.5 (extreme, +4.5°C and +850 ppm CO2 over current scenario). Female <em>An. aquasalis</em> mosquitoes were infected with <em>P. vivax</em> via artificial membrane feeding, and survival, infection, and expression of immune genes (<em>Attacin, Cecropin, and Defensin</em>) evaluated. All conditions supported parasite development, with no significant differences in infection rates (54 - 68 %) or oocyst intensity. However, mosquito survival declined significantly under RCPs 6.0 and 8.5, with probabilities of 18.6 % and 6.5 % by day 7 post-infection respectively, versus 40 % in the non-blood-fed controls (p&lt;0.001). <em>Attacin</em> expression differed significantly between the experimental control and RCP 4.5 (P = 0.0379), and RCP 8.5 (P = 0.0016); RCPs 6.0 and 8.5 (P = 0.0210). <em>Defensin</em> also varied between RCP 4.5 and 6.0 (P = 0.0359); RCP 6.0 and experimental control (P = 0.0464), and RCP 8.5 and experimental control (P = 0.0274), suggesting decreased immune activation under higher heat and CO₂ stress. <em>Cecropin</em> showed no significant variations. While <em>An. aquasalis</em> retained infectivity under all simulated conditions, the increased mortality and altered immune gene expression observed in RCPs 6.0 and 8.5 suggest that future climatic stress may compromise vector fitness.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107930"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145676207","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Household health extension program adherence and risk of active trachoma in children aged 1–9 years: Evidence from Northern Ethiopia","authors":"Berihun Mulu Yayeh ,&nbsp;Kevin Fong-Rey Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107928","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107928","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Abstract</div></div><div><h3>Background</h3><div>Trachoma, caused by <em>Chlamydia trachomatis</em>, remains the leading infectious cause of preventable blindness globally, with children aged 1–9 years bearing the highest burden. Ethiopia continues to report a high prevalence despite ongoing control efforts. The Health Extension Program (HEP) aims to improve household hygiene and sanitation. This is the first study to quantify the direct association between household-level HEP adherence and active trachoma prevalence.</div></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><div>To assess the prevalence of active trachoma among children aged 1–9 years and examine its association with household-level HEP adherence in Northern Ethiopia.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 422 children in Wag Hemra Zone, Northern Ethiopia from March–May 2025. A simple random sampling identified households, and one child per household was included. Data on socio-demographics, HEP adherence, and WASH practices were collected using structured questionnaires. Clinical examination for active trachoma (TF/TI) was performed by trained ophthalmic nurses following the WHO simplified grading system. Binary and multivariable logistic regression analyses identified factors associated with active trachoma (p &lt; 0.05).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The overall prevalence of active trachoma was 6.3% (95% CI: 4.0–9.2%). Only 40% of households demonstrated high HEP adherence (≥75% of recommended practices). In multivariable analysis, children from low-adherence households were more likely to have active trachoma (AOR = 3.2; 95% CI: 1.5–6.7). Poor facial hygiene (AOR = 2.8; 95% CI: 1.3–5.9) and lack of functional latrines (AOR = 2.5; 95% CI: 1.1–5.6) were also significant predictors. Age, sex, and parental education were not independently associated.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Despite improvements in HEP coverage, active trachoma remains above the WHO elimination threshold in Northern Ethiopia. Household-level adherence to hygiene and sanitation practices, facial cleanliness, and latrine use are key determinants of disease risk. Strengthening HEP implementation, promoting facial hygiene, and improving sanitation infrastructure are critical for accelerating progress toward trachoma elimination. These findings underscore the need for enhanced community-level interventions and targeted HEP strategies to accelerate trachoma elimination in Ethiopia and similar endemic settings.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107928"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145653150","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Host–parasite interaction networks between nematodes and non-volant small mammals in Brazil: A systematic review and ecological network analysis","authors":"Leonardo França do Nascimento ,&nbsp;Isabela Caroline Oliveira da Silva ,&nbsp;Eliseu Baldez Neto ,&nbsp;Beatriz Elise de Andrade-Silva ,&nbsp;Nayara Yoshie Sano ,&nbsp;Eduardo José Lopes-Torres ,&nbsp;Filipe Martins Santos","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107924","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107924","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Rodents and didelphids are highly diverse and abundant groups that can be found in different ecological niches, including anthropized environments. This can favor a high diversity of zoonotic agents, constituting a complex network of ecological interactions. Nematode parasites can have adaptative flexibility to emerge as new diseases, considering its ecology and diversity, so we aimed to evaluate the functional role of a network interaction between small mammals and nematodes parasites. We used a literature search to construct our network. A total of 52 articles were selected for analysis, from which 80 records of nematodes parasitizing small mammals were retrieved, being 24 species associated with Didelphimorphia and 56 with Rodentia. No nematode species were found parasitizing hosts from both orders. The network exhibited significant modularity (Q_W = 0.62, <em>P</em> = 0.01), but did not show significant overall specialization (H2 = 0.48, <em>P</em> = 0.23), nor nestedness (WNODF metric = 0.03, <em>P</em> = 0.1), but there is a nestedness patterns both within modules (WNODA_SM = 0.17, <em>P</em> = 0.02) and across the entire network (WNODA = 0.03, <em>P</em> = 0.01). We observed 18 modules all related to the host family. All the hosts roles were classified as either ultraperipheral (81.58 %) or peripheral (18.42 %); and the nematodes were 90 % classified as ultraperipheral, 7.5 % classified as peripheral. Only <em>Aspidodera raillieti</em> and <em>Guerrerostrongylus zetta</em> were classified as provincial hubs. This could highlight the importance of niche sharing by hosts in the cycle transmission of those parasites and how the loss of these key species could result in module fragmentation and compromise system stability, emphasizing their critical role in network architecture and in hotspots of biodiversity and threaten biomes such as Atlantic Forest and Pantanal.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107924"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145621291","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Lysine acetylation in the spargana of Spirometra mansoni: Insights into glycolysis and EF-hand domain proteins","authors":"Yuke Zeng ,&nbsp;Asmaa M.I. Abuzeid ,&nbsp;Qin Meng ,&nbsp;Shuyu Chen ,&nbsp;Xiaoruo Tan ,&nbsp;Cuiqin Huang ,&nbsp;Shiquan Lu ,&nbsp;Teng Zhong ,&nbsp;Yuanpeng Hu ,&nbsp;Yisong Liu ,&nbsp;Wei Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107932","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107932","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) refer to the covalent attachment of chemical groups to polypeptide chains after protein synthesis, which expands protein chemical diversity and enhances functional versatility. Common PTM types include phosphorylation, glycosylation, and lysine acetylation (Kac), a major, reversible PTM regulated by lysine acetyltransferases (KATs) and lysine deacetylases (KDACs). Kac cross-regulates with other modifications to govern chromatin transcription and epigenetic programs, and occurs in histones, nucleoproteins, and cytoplasmic regulatory factors. In this study, we employed proteomic approaches to investigate lysine acetylation in proteins derived from snake-borne spargana for the first time. A total of 390 acetylated proteins and 655 Kac sites were identified. Subcellular localization analysis revealed these acetylated proteins were predominantly localized in the cytoplasm, followed by the mitochondria, nucleus, extracellular matrix, and plasma membrane. This study aims to expand our understanding of protein acetylation in <em>Spirometra mansoni</em> plerocercoid larvae and provide valuable information for designing effective drugs or vaccines to control sparganosis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107932"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145666405","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Forecasting visceral leishmaniasis in Sudan using hybrid wavelet based deep learning models on climate driven multivariate time series","authors":"Fathelrhman El Guma","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107911","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107911","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a climate-driven disease with a complex epidemiological pattern and is difficult to predict, especially in regions like eastern Sudan, where disease patterns vary substantially from season to season. In this study, our objective was to forecast the monthly incidence of VL in Gedaref State based on key climatic drivers—precipitation, temperature, and humidity. To capture the complex dynamics of disease transmission, we propose a new hybrid model based on wavelet transforms and state-of-the-art deep learning models to decompose multi-scale patterns and learn linear and nonlinear relationships.. We developed and tested hybrid models: <em>Wavelet-Gaussian Process Regression (Wavelet-GPR)</em>, Wavelet–Spatiotemporal Graph Neural Network (Wavelet–StemGNN), and Wavelet–Temporal Convolutional Network with Bidirectional LSTM (Wavelet–TCN–BiLSTM). These were compared against a traditional Vector Autoregressive model (VAR) as a baseline. We employed a fixed temporal split (2000–2018 for training; 2019–2022 for testing). All models were implemented using Python and their performance was evaluated using key forecasting metrics: RMSE, MAE, <span><math><msup><mrow><mi>R</mi></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msup></math></span>, and MAPE.</div><div>Our wavelet-GPR model outperformed both baseline and other deep learning methods in terms of prediction accuracy (RMSE = 43.93, MAE = 32.85, <span><math><msup><mrow><mi>R</mi></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msup></math></span> = 0.93, MAPE = 14.6%), with the smallest prediction errors and well-calibrated 95% predictive intervals. The results of our study underscore the possibility of improving the disease surveillance and early warning systems by means of hybrid wavelet-based artificial intelligence models, particularly in resource constraints situations. The projection may be employed for monthly early warning bulletins and the strategic pre-positioning of diagnostics and medicines in Gedaref. The method is straightforward to modify to different VL locations in Sudan and East Africa, and it requires much re-calibration. Future projects will include more layers of environmental and socio-economic data to make predictions and planning operations easier.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107911"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145562323","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Hepatitis C virus exposure prevalence and associated factors among incarcerated individuals in Central-West Brazil","authors":"Renata Oliveira Aquino Morais ,&nbsp;Megmar Aparecida dos Santos Carneiro ,&nbsp;Marcos André Matos ,&nbsp;Juliana Menara de Souza Marques ,&nbsp;Ágabo Macedo Costa Silva ,&nbsp;Nara Rubia Freitas ,&nbsp;Isabela da Silva Kunert ,&nbsp;Fabiana Ribeiro Sousa ,&nbsp;Luciene Pires Rosa Cruz ,&nbsp;Regina Maria Bringel Martins ,&nbsp;Márcia Alves Dias Matos","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107918","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107918","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Incarcerated populations are disproportionately affected by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) due to overlapping social, structural, and behavioral vulnerabilities. However, epidemiological data from some regions in Brazil, a continental country, remain scarce. Therefore, this study estimated the HCV exposure prevalence and identified associated factors among inmates in Goiás, a state in the Central-West region of Brazil. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 1083 inmates from prison units in Goiás. All participants were interviewed, and their serum samples were tested for anti-HCV using ELISA and confirmed by a line immunoassay. The prevalence of anti-HCV was 2.2 % (95 % CI: 1.42–3.28). A multivariate analysis showed that age &gt; 32 years (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 4.821; 95 % confidence interval [CI]: 1.492–15.574; <em>p</em> = 0.009), history of injectable drugs use (aOR = 4.536; 95 % CI: 1.685–12.212; <em>p</em> = 0.003), history of sexually transmitted infections (STIs, aOR = 3.313; 95 % CI: 1.213–9.049; <em>p</em> = 0.019), and HBV infection (aOR = 3.147; 95 % CI: 1.052–9.411; <em>p</em> = 0.040) were associated with HCV exposure. These findings revealed that the anti-HCV prevalence is higher among incarcerated individuals in Goiás than in the general population in Brazil, and the use of injectable drugs as the factor with the strongest association with HCV exposure emphasized the importance of HCV transmission through the parenteral route. Additionally, the association with HBV infection and previous STIs highlights the need for integrated screening of multiple infections and ongoing surveillance for HCV within the prison environment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107918"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145556044","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Immunomodulatory and anti-fibrotic effects of Toxocara canis infection in a murine model of thioacetamide-induced chronic hepatic fibrosis","authors":"Iman F. Abou-El-Naga ,&nbsp;Eman Dorry Elkerdany ,&nbsp;Rania G. Aly ,&nbsp;Enas Mohamed Mostafa Zaytoun","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107913","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107913","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Chronic hepatic fibrosis is a serious result of chronic extracellular matrix (ECM) accumulation due to repeated liver injury from varied causes such as viruses, alcohol and chemicals. Toxocaral hepatitis, however, is brought about by inflammation resulting from migrating larvae of <em>Toxocara canis</em> (<em>T. canis</em>). Researchers have not yet explored the interaction between thioacetamide (TAA) induced and hepatic toxocariasis. In this experiment, the effect of these larvae as a potential safe vector that carries glycoconjugate antigens for treatment of liver fibrosis investigated in a model of chronic TAA intoxication. Chronic hepatic fibrosis induced in mice by 8 weeks intraperitoneal treatment with TAA. Hepatic larva migrans established over two weeks by oral administration of 1000 third-stage larvated eggs. In <em>T. canis</em> infected groups after establishment of hepatic fibrosis (TAA/<em>T. canis</em>), alternatively activated M2 macrophage polarization against fibrosis retained. However, compared to TAA injected groups, the M2 macrophage clusters significantly decreased (p-value &lt;0.001).. Furthermore, TAA/<em>T. canis</em> groups had a significant decrease in hepatic collagen I and III fiber depositions compared to TAA injected groups (p value &lt;0.001). By Batts-Ludwig scoring system, histopathological alterations observed in liver grading and staging. Thus, <em>T. canis</em> larvae can exhibit anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic activity in chronic liver injury. Such achievement is most likely influenced by immunomodulatory mechanisms, possibly through macrophage phenotypes modulation and suppression of ECM buildup. More studies will be necessary to advance novel antifibrotic strategies by means of parasite antigens.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107913"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145533905","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Dynamics and MicroRNA144/451-mediated mechanisms of regulatory B Cells during Schistosoma japonicum infection in Mice","authors":"Fang Tian ,&nbsp;Yumeng Jiao ,&nbsp;Bin Yang ,&nbsp;Kangwen Xian ,&nbsp;Mengqi Xu ,&nbsp;Jiahui Xu ,&nbsp;Lijun Song ,&nbsp;Li Qian ,&nbsp;Jin-Hee Han ,&nbsp;Eun-Taek Han ,&nbsp;Feng Lu","doi":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107912","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107912","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div><em>Schistosoma japonicum</em> (<em>S. japonicum</em>) infection and soluble egg antigens (SEA) can induce various immune responses, including the generation of IL-10-producing regulatory B cells (Bregs). This study investigated the dynamic changes and induction mechanisms of Bregs during <em>S. japonicum</em> infection. We demonstrated that CD19⁺IL-10⁺Bregs and CD19⁺Tim-1⁺ Bregs secreting IL-10 gradually increased from 6 to 13 weeks after infection. The CD19⁺Tim-1⁺ Bregs exhibited immunosuppressive functions by promoting IL-4 secretion, inhibiting IL-17 production in CD4⁺ <em>T</em> cells, and increasing the percentages of CD4⁺CD25⁺Foxp3⁺ <em>T</em> cells. MicroRNAs play a key role in both the early differentiation and effector differentiation of B cells in the immune system. We analyzed the expression of miRNAs in the splenic B cells of mice infected with <em>S. japonicum</em> for 13 weeks and predicted their target genes. There were 33 up-regulated and 10 down-regulated miRNAs. Furthermore, we found that Bregs could not be induced in miR-144/451^-/- mice after <em>S. japonicum</em> infection and SEA stimulation. The effect of miR-144/451 on Bregs may be mediated through the mTOR signaling pathway. These findings provide new insights into the mechanisms underlying Bregs activation and their role in modulating immune responses during schistosomiasis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7240,"journal":{"name":"Acta tropica","volume":"272 ","pages":"Article 107912"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145533928","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}