Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41951731›Full record

ArticleNature2026

DNA damage drives antigen diversification in Trypanosoma brucei.

Jaclyn E Smith, Kevin J Wang, Erin M Kennedy, Jane C Munday, Lulu Singer, Jill M C Hakim, Jaime So, Alexander K Beaver, Aishwarya Magesh, Shane D Gilligan-Steinberg and 8 more

Abstract read

PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher

In one paragraph

Article in Nature, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

1citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

Restriction-modification systems are required forProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2026
Article

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

Update of
DNA damage drives antigen diversification through mosaic Variant Surface Glycoprotein (VSG) formation in2024

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

18 authors.

Jaclyn E SmithW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2392-0585

Kevin J WangW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0000-3690-2223

Erin M KennedyW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0005-8407-9311

Jane C MundayUniversity of Glasgow Centre for Parasitology, School of Infection and Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7792-2749

Lulu SingerW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0003-0174-9419

Jill M C HakimW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.

Jaime SoW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.

Alexander K BeaverW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0000-6314-5934

Aishwarya MageshW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0003-7103-7206

Shane D Gilligan-SteinbergW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9036-565X

Jessica ZhengW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0008-8115-2060

Bailin ZhangW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7606-4014

Dharani Narayan MoorthyW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0004-1973-8889

Zachary E BrownW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0006-3937-6517

Elgin Henry AkinW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8824-8809

Lusajo MwakibeteW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.

Richard McCullochUniversity of Glasgow Centre for Parasitology, School of Infection and Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5739-976X

Monica R MugnierW. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA. mmugnie1@jhu.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1535-2530

Funding

Variant surface glycoprotein diversification in Trypanosoma bruceiDP5OD023065 · OD · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · PI MUGNIER, MONICA · 2016 to 2020

$2.1M

NIH HHS DP5 OD023065

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Antigenic variation, using large genomic repertoires of antigen-encoding genes, allows pathogens to evade host antibody. Many pathogens, including the African trypanosome Trypanosoma brucei, extend their antigenic repertoire through genomic diversification. Although evidence suggests that T. brucei depends on the generation of new variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) genes to maintain a chronic infection

Indexed as

Antigenic VariationDNA Breaks, Double-StrandedTrypanosoma brucei bruceiVariant Surface Glycoproteins, TrypanosomaAnimalsImmune EvasionRad51 RecombinaseRecombination, GeneticRad51 RecombinaseVariant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma

Identifiers

PMID41951731

DOI10.1038/s41586-026-10337-6

PMCPMC13233330

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.