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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Year : 2022  |  Volume : 15  |  Issue : 2  |  Page : 71-78

Ultrastructural and enzymatic alterations in the ovary of Rhodnius prolixus infected with Trypanosoma rangeli


1 Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências e Biotecnologia; Laboratório de Biodiversidade de Insetos e Patógenos, Departamento de Biologia Geral, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, RJ, Brazil
2 Laboratório de Estudos Avançados de Microrganismos Emergentes e Resistentes, Departamento de Microbiologia Geral, Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
3 Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Piauí, Teresina, PI, Brazil
4 Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Piauí, Teresina, PI; Laboratório Interdisciplinar de Vigilância Entomológica em Díptera e Hemíptera, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro; Universidade Iguaçu, Nova Iguaçu, RJ, Brazil
5 Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências e Biotecnologia; Laboratório de Biologia de Insetos, Departamento de Biologia Geral, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, RJ, Brazil

Correspondence Address:
Suzete A O. Gomes
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências e Biotecnologia; Laboratório de Biodiversidade de Insetos e Patógenos, Departamento de Biologia Geral, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, RJ
Brazil
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Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None


DOI: 10.4103/1995-7645.338437

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Objective: To investigate the morphological structure of ovarian follicular cells and biochemical parameters of both ovaries and fat bodies (sites of vitellogenesis) from Rhodnius (R.) prolixus infected with Trypanosoma (T.) rangeli. Methods: Adult virgin females of R. prolixus were fed upon a membrane apparatus containing heat-inactivated citrated rabbit blood and a suspension of T. rangeli epimastigotes (Macias strain). Females from the control group and all the males received parasite- free blood. Transmission electron microscopy was used to reveal the morphological aspects of ovarian follicle cells in both control and parasite-infected groups. Protein profile, proteolytic activities and Western blotting analyses were performed in either ovary or fat body samples of control and parasite-infected groups. Results: According to the ultrastructural data, T. rangeli infection elicited a degeneration process in the ovarian follicular cells of R. prolixus. Proteolytic assays indicated a reduction in the activity of aspartic peptidases in the ovary and fat body from parasite-infected group, while a significant increase in the cysteine peptidase activity was measured in both insect organs. Additionally, immunoblotting revealed that vitellogenin was overexpressed in the ovary of parasite-infected insects. Conclusions: T. rangeli infection seems to elicit an early programmed cell death in the ovarian follicle cells as well as induces the modulation on the activities of different peptidase classes in either ovaries or fat bodies and the overexpression of the vitellogenin in the ovary of R. prolixus.


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