De novo discovery of neuropeptides in the genomes of parasitic flatworms using a novel comparative approach

[Display omitted] •A novel comparative method is used for in silico discovery of neuropeptide precursors (NPPs).•The method was validated using the models Caenorhabditis, Drosophila and planarians.•NPPs and receptors in parasitic flatworms were identified.•Some conserved bilaterian neuropeptides are...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal for parasitology 2016-10, Vol.46 (11), p.709-721
Main Authors: Koziol, Uriel, Koziol, Miguel, Preza, Matías, Costábile, Alicia, Brehm, Klaus, Castillo, Estela
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Bilateria
Caenorhabditis elegans
Caenorhabditis elegans - chemistry
Caenorhabditis elegans - genetics
Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins - chemistry
Cestoda
Cestode
Drosophila melanogaster
Drosophila melanogaster - chemistry
Drosophila melanogaster - genetics
Drosophila Proteins - chemistry
Echinococcus multilocularis
Echinococcus multilocularis - chemistry
Echinococcus multilocularis - genetics
Genome, Helminth
Helminth Proteins - chemistry
Humans
In silico
In Situ Hybridization
Nematoda
Neuropeptide
Neuropeptides - chemistry
Neuropeptides - genetics
Neuropeptides - isolation & purification
Peptide hormone
Phylogeny
Planarian
Planarians - chemistry
Planarians - genetics
Protein Precursors - chemistry
Protein Precursors - genetics
Protein Precursors - isolation & purification
Sensitivity and Specificity
Sequence Alignment
Signal Transduction
Trematode
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Summary:[Display omitted] •A novel comparative method is used for in silico discovery of neuropeptide precursors (NPPs).•The method was validated using the models Caenorhabditis, Drosophila and planarians.•NPPs and receptors in parasitic flatworms were identified.•Some conserved bilaterian neuropeptides are present in parasitic flatworms.•Candidate genes were shown to be expressed in the nervous system in Echinococcus. Neuropeptide mediated signalling is an ancient mechanism found in almost all animals and has been proposed as a promising target for the development of novel drugs against helminths. However, identification of neuropeptides from genomic data is challenging, and knowledge of the neuropeptide complement of parasitic flatworms is still fragmentary. In this work, we have developed an evolution-based strategy for the de novo discovery of neuropeptide precursors, based on the detection of localised sequence conservation between possible prohormone convertase cleavage sites. The method detected known neuropeptide precursors with good precision and specificity in the models Drosophila melanogaster and Caenorhabditis elegans. Furthermore, it identified novel putative neuropeptide precursors in nematodes, including the first description of allatotropin homologues in this phylum. Our search for neuropeptide precursors in the genomes of parasitic flatworms resulted in the description of 34 conserved neuropeptide precursor families, including 13 new ones, and of hundreds of new homologues of known neuropeptide precursor families. Most neuropeptide precursor families show a wide phylogenetic distribution among parasitic flatworms and show little similarity to neuropeptide precursors of other bilaterian animals. However, we could also find orthologs of some conserved bilaterian neuropeptides including pyrokinin, crustacean cardioactive peptide, myomodulin, neuropeptide-Y, neuropeptide KY and SIF-amide. Finally, we determined the expression patterns of seven putative neuropeptide precursor genes in the protoscolex of Echinococcus multilocularis. All genes were expressed in the nervous system with different patterns, indicating a hidden complexity of peptidergic signalling in cestodes.
ISSN:0020-7519
1879-0135
DOI:10.1016/j.ijpara.2016.05.007