Know your enemy – transcriptome of myxozoan Tetracapsuloides bryosalmonae reveals potential drug targets against proliferative kidney disease in salmonids

Abstract

AbstractThe myxozoanTetracapsuloides bryosalmonaeis a widely spread endoparasite that causes proliferative kidney disease (PKD) in salmonid fish. We developed anin silicopipeline to separate transcripts ofT. bryosalmonaefrom the kidney tissue of its natural vertebrate host, brown trout (Salmo trutta). After stringent filtering, we constructed a partial transcriptome assemblyT. bryosalmonae, comprising 3427 transcripts. Based on homology-restricted searches of the assembled parasite transcriptome and Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) proteome, we identified four protein targets (Endoglycoceramidase, Legumain-like protease, Carbonic anhydrase 2, Pancreatic lipase-related protein 2) for the development of anti-parasitic drugs againstT. bryosalmonae. Earlier work of these proteins on parasitic protists and helminths suggests that the identified anti-parasitic drug targets represent promising chemotherapeutic candidates also againstT. bryosalmonae, and strengthen the view that the known inhibitors can be effective in evolutionarily distant organisms. In addition, we identified differentially expressedT. bryosalmonaegenes between moderately and severely infected fish, indicating an increased abundance ofT. bryosalmonaesporogonic stages in fish with low parasite load. In conclusion, this study paves the way for future genomic research inT. bryosalmonaeand represents an important step towards the development of effective drugs against PKD.