ArticleBMC biology2021
Genomics and transcriptomics yields a system-level view of the biology of the pathogen Naegleria fowleri.
Article in BMC biology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers.
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24 citing papers in PubMed, 35 citations in OpenAlex.
- Article
- Article
- Development of Approaches for Transgene Expression in the Pathogenic Free-Living AmoebaPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Article
- Structure-Based Insights into Stefin-Mediated Targeting of Fowlerpain-1: Towards Novel Therapeutics forPharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Comparative single-cell genomics of two uncultivatedmSphere · 2025Article
- Eating the brain - A multidisciplinary study provides new insights into the mechanisms underlying the cytopathogenicity of Naegleria fowleri.PLoS pathogens · 2025Article
- Computational discovery of potential therapeutic agents against brain-eating amoeba (Naegleria fowleri).PloS one · 2025Article
- Understanding the pathogenicity of Naegleria fowleri in association with N. fowleri antigen-1 (Nfa1).Parasites, hosts and diseases · 2024Review
- Enolase inhibitors as therapeutic leads for Naegleria fowleri infection.PLoS pathogens · 2024Article
- Glucose metabolism in the pathogenic free-living amoebae: Tempting targets for treatment development.Chemical biology & drug design · 2024Review
- Transcriptomic profiling of "brain-eating amoeba"Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2024Article
- Lessons from the deep: mechanisms behind diversification of eukaryotic protein complexes.Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society · 2023Article
- Evaluation and validation of reference genes for RT-qPCR gene expression in Naegleria gruberi.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Distribution and Current State of Molecular Genetic Characterization in Pathogenic Free-Living Amoebae.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- In Silico Structural Analysis of Serine CarboxypeptidaseInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2022Article
- Localization and functional characterization of the alternative oxidase in Naegleria.The Journal of eukaryotic microbiology · 2022Article
- Characterization of Glucokinases from Pathogenic Free-Living Amoebae.Antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy · 2022Article
- Antiamoebic Properties of Metabolites againstAntibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Naegleria's mitotic spindles are built from unique tubulins and highlight core spindle features.Current biology : CB · 2022Article
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Authors and funding
25 authors at 17 institutions in 9 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe opportunistic pathogen Naegleria fowleri establishes infection in the human brain, killing almost invariably within 2 weeks. The amoeba performs piece-meal ingestion, or trogocytosis, of brain material causing direct tissue damage and massive inflammation. The cellular basis distinguishing N. fowleri from other Naegleria species, which are all non-pathogenic, is not known. Yet, with the geographic range of N. fowleri advancing, potentially due to climate change, understanding how this pathogen invades and kills is both important and timely.
resultsHere, we report an -omics approach to understanding N. fowleri biology and infection at the system level. We sequenced two new strains of N. fowleri and performed a transcriptomic analysis of low- versus high-pathogenicity N. fowleri cultured in a mouse infection model. Comparative analysis provides an in-depth assessment of encoded protein complement between strains, finding high conservation. Molecular evolutionary analyses of multiple diverse cellular systems demonstrate that the N. fowleri genome encodes a similarly complete cellular repertoire to that found in free-living N. gruberi. From transcriptomics, neither stress responses nor traits conferred from lateral gene transfer are suggested as critical for pathogenicity. By contrast, cellular systems such as proteases, lysosomal machinery, and motility, together with metabolic reprogramming and novel N. fowleri proteins, are all implicated in facilitating pathogenicity within the host. Upregulation in mouse-passaged N. fowleri of genes associated with glutamate metabolism and ammonia transport suggests adaptation to available carbon sources in the central nervous system.
conclusionsIn-depth analysis of Naegleria genomes and transcriptomes provides a model of cellular systems involved in opportunistic pathogenicity, uncovering new angles to understanding the biology of a rare but highly fatal pathogen.
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