Abundance and viability of bryophyte spores found in honeybee pollen
Abstract
Chronic toxoplasmosis, a foodborne illness primarily affecting immunocompromised people and pregnant women, remains untreatable. The causative parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, survives via tissue cysts within brain cells. To investigate nutrient acquisition by T. gondii in cyst development, the translocon-encoding genes GRA17 and GRA23 are proposed as possible drug targets, because they facilitate material transfer between host and parasite. The roles of GRA17 and GRA23 have been analyzed through physiological differences between knockout strains in growth and plaque assays. Preliminary results indicate both genes are crucial for parasite growth, suggesting that targeting them may be an effective strategy to treat chronic toxoplasmosis.
Primary Faculty Mentor Name
Chris Skinner
Status
Graduate
Student College
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Program/Major
Biology
Primary Research Category
Life Sciences
Abundance and viability of bryophyte spores found in honeybee pollen
Chronic toxoplasmosis, a foodborne illness primarily affecting immunocompromised people and pregnant women, remains untreatable. The causative parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, survives via tissue cysts within brain cells. To investigate nutrient acquisition by T. gondii in cyst development, the translocon-encoding genes GRA17 and GRA23 are proposed as possible drug targets, because they facilitate material transfer between host and parasite. The roles of GRA17 and GRA23 have been analyzed through physiological differences between knockout strains in growth and plaque assays. Preliminary results indicate both genes are crucial for parasite growth, suggesting that targeting them may be an effective strategy to treat chronic toxoplasmosis.
