scholarly journals Establishment of Babesia bovis In Vitro Culture Using Medium Free of Animal Products

Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 770
Author(s):  
Jesús A. Álvarez Martínez ◽  
Julio V. Figueroa Millán ◽  
Massaro W. Ueti ◽  
Carmen Rojas-Martínez

Babesia bovis, an etiological agent of bovine babesiosis, causes a significant burden to the cattle industry worldwide. The most efficient method to mitigate bovine babesiosis is a live vaccine produced by serial passage in splenectomized cattle. However, there are several concerns regarding live vaccine production, including variation between batches and the use of many animals. In this study, we report a B. bovis-SF strain continuously cultured in a medium free of components of animal origin enriched with a chemically defined lipid mixture (CD lipid mixture) and the use of a perfusion bioreactor to harvest a large amount of B. bovis. Six culture media were compared, including VP-SFM, CD-CHO, CD-Hydrolyzed, CD-CHO, SFM, and ADMEM/F12. We found that the VP-SFM medium performed the best for B. bovis growth, with a maximum percentage of parasitized erythrocytes (PPE) of 8.6%. The effect of six dilutions of a commercial mixture of CD lipids added to VP-SFM showed that the CD lipid mixture at a dilution of 1:100 had the best B. bovis growth curve, with a maximum PPE of 13.9%. Propagation of the in vitro B. bovis culture was scaled up in a perfusion bioreactor using VP-SFM with a CD lipid mixture, and the PPE reached over 32%. The continuous in vitro B. bovis culture in a medium free of animal origin components could potentially reduce and replace the use of animals to produce a reagent for diagnostics and live vaccines to control bovine babesiosis.


Pathogens ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 343
Author(s):  
Jesús A. Álvarez Martínez ◽  
Julio V. Figueroa Millán ◽  
Massaro W. Ueti ◽  
Carmen Rojas-Martínez

In this study, we report Babesia bigemina proliferation in culture medium free of components of animal origin supplemented with a lipid mixture. Babesia bigemina continuously proliferated in VP-SFM with a higher percent parasitized erythrocyte as compare to using other animal component-free culture media. Compared with Advanced DMEM/F12 (ADMEM/F12), VP-SFM had a similar percent parasitized erythrocyte (PPE). Supplementation of VP-SF with a lipid acid mixture improved B. bigemina proliferation in vitro culture, with a maximum PPE of 11.3%. Growth of B. bigemina in a perfusion bioreactor using VP-SFM medium supplemented with lipid mixture resulted in a PPE above 28%. In conclusion, we demonstrated that B. bigemina proliferated in an animal component-free medium supplemented with the fatty acid mixture. This innovation to B. bigemina in vitro culture method presented herein is an important source of biological material for live vaccine production and understanding the mechanisms and molecules involved in parasite attachment and invasion of bovine erythrocytes.



2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Suarez ◽  
Marta G. Silva ◽  
Reginaldo G. Bastos ◽  
J. Stone Doggett ◽  
Michael K. Riscoe ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The most common apicomplexan parasites causing bovine babesiosis are Babesia bovis and B. bigemina, while B. caballi and Theileria equi are responsible for equine piroplasmosis. Treatment and control of these diseases are usually achieved using potentially toxic chemotherapeutics, such as imidocarb diproprionate, but drug-resistant parasites are emerging, and alternative effective and safer drugs are needed. Endochin-like quinolones (ELQ)-300 and ELQ-316 proved safe and efficacious against related apicomplexans, such as Plasmodium spp., and ELQ-316 was also effective against B. microti, without showing toxicity in mammals.Methods: Inhibitory effects of ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 were assessed on the growth of cultured B. bovis, B. bigemina, B. caballi and T. equi. Percentage of parasitized erythrocytes was measured by flow cytometry. Effect of the ELQ drugs on the viability of actively replicating horse and bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was assessed by ELISA. Results: We calculated IC50 ranging from 0.04 to 0.37 nM for ELQ-300, and from 0.002 to 0.1 nM for ELQ-316 at 72 hr among all cultured parasites tested. None of the parasites tested were able to replicate in cultures in the presence of the ELQs-300 and ELQ-316 at IC100, which range from 1.3 to 5.7 nM for ELQ-300 and from 1.0 to 6.0 nM for ELQ-316 at 72 hours. Neither ELQ-300 nor ELQ-316 altered the viability of equine and bovine PBMC at their IC100 in in vitro testing. Conclusions: ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 have a significant inhibitory activity on the main parasites responsible for bovine babesiosis and equine piroplasmosis at doses that are tolerable to host cells. These ELQ drugs may be viable candidates for developing alternative protocols for the treatment of bovine babesiosis and equine piroplasmosis.



Pathogens ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 143 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Antonio Alvarez ◽  
Carmen Rojas ◽  
Julio V. Figueroa

Bovine babesiosis is a tick-borne disease of cattle caused by the protozoan parasites of the genus Babesia. Babesia bovis, Babesia bigemina and Babesia divergens are considered by International health authorities (OIE) as the principal species of Babesia that cause bovine babesiosis. Animals that recover from a babesial primo infection may remain as persistent carriers with no clinical signs of disease and can be the source of infection for ticks that are able to acquire Babesia parasites from infected cattle and to transmit Babesia parasites to susceptible cattle. Several procedures that have been developed for parasite detection and diagnosis of this infectious carrier state constitute the basis for this review: A brief description of the direct microscopic detection of Babesia-infected erytrocytes; PCR-based diagnostic assays, which are very sensitive particularly in detecting Babesia in carrier cattle; in-vitro culture methods, used to demonstrate presence of carrier infections of Babesia sp.; animal inoculation, particularly for B. divergens isolation are discussed. Alternatively, persistently infected animals can be tested for specific antibabesial antibodies by using indirect serological assays. Serological procedures are not necessarily consistent in identifying persistently infected animals and have the disadvantage of presenting with cross reactions between antibodies to Babesia sp.



2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta G. Silva ◽  
Reginaldo G. Bastos ◽  
J. Stone Doggett ◽  
Michael K. Riscoe ◽  
Sovitj Pou ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The most common apicomplexan parasites causing bovine babesiosis are Babesia bovis and B. bigemina, while B. caballi and Theileria equi are responsible for equine piroplasmosis. Treatment and control of these diseases are usually achieved using potentially toxic chemotherapeutics, such as imidocarb diproprionate, but drug-resistant parasites are emerging, and alternative effective and safer drugs are needed. Endochin-like quinolones (ELQ)-300 and ELQ-316 proved safe and efficacious against related apicomplexans, such as Plasmodium spp., and ELQ-316 was also effective against B. microti, without showing toxicity in mammals.Methods: Inhibitory effects of ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 were assessed on the growth of cultured B. bovis, B. bigemina, B. caballi and T. equi. Percentage of parasitized erythrocytes was measured by flow cytometry. Effect of the ELQ drugs on the viability of horse and bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was assessed by monitoring cell metabolic activity using a colorimetric assay.Results: We calculated IC50 ranging from 0.04 to 0.37 nM for ELQ-300, and from 0.002 to 0.1 nM for ELQ-316 at 72 h among all cultured parasites tested. None of the parasites tested were able to replicate in cultures in the presence of the ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 at IC100, which range from 1.3 to 5.7 nM for ELQ-300 and from 1.0 to 6.0 nM for ELQ-316 at 72 h. Neither ELQ-300 nor ELQ-316 altered the viability of equine and bovine PBMC at their IC100 in in vitro testing. Conclusions: ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 showed significant inhibitory activity on the main parasites responsible for bovine babesiosis and equine piroplasmosis at doses that are tolerable to host cells. These ELQ drugs may be viable candidates for developing alternative protocols for the treatment of bovine babesiosis and equine piroplasmosis.



2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 190-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Rojas-Martínez ◽  
Roger Iván Rodríguez-Vivas ◽  
Julio Vicente Figueroa Millán ◽  
Carlos Ramón Bautista-Garfias ◽  
Roberto Omar Castañeda-Arriola ◽  
...  


PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e11765
Author(s):  
Amarin Rittipornlertrak ◽  
Boondarika Nambooppha ◽  
Anucha Muenthaisong ◽  
Veerasak Punyapornwithaya ◽  
Saruda Tiwananthagorn ◽  
...  

Background Bovine babesiosis caused by Babesia bovis (B. bovis) has had a significant effect on the mobility and mortality rates of the cattle industry worldwide. Live-attenuated vaccines are currently being used in many endemic countries, but their wide use has been limited for a number of reasons. Although recombinant vaccines have been proposed as an alternative to live vaccines, such vaccines are not commercially available to date. Apical membrane antigen-1 (AMA-1) is one of the leading candidates in the development of a vaccine against diseases caused by apicomplexan parasite species. In Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) AMA-1 (PfAMA-1), several antibodies against epitopes in the plasminogen, apple, and nematode (PAN) motif of PfAMA-1 domain I significantly inhibited parasite growth. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to predict an epitope from the PAN motif of domain I in the B. bovis AMA-1 (BbAMA-1) using a combination of linear and conformational B-cell epitope prediction software. The selected epitope was then bioinformatically analyzed, synthesized as a peptide (sBbAMA-1), and then used to immunize a rabbit. Subsequently, in vitro growth- and the invasion-inhibitory effects of the rabbit antiserum were immunologically characterized. Results Our results demonstrated that the predicted BbAMA-1 epitope was located on the surface-exposed α-helix of the PAN motif in domain I at the apex area between residues 181 and 230 with six polymorphic sites. Subsequently, sBbAMA-1 elicited antibodies capable of recognizing the native BbAMA-1 in immunoassays. Furthermore, anti-serum against sBbAMA-1 was immunologically evaluated for its growth- and invasion-inhibitory effects on B. bovis merozoites in vitro. Our results demonstrated that the rabbit anti-sBbAMA-1 serum at a dilution of 1:5 significantly inhibited (p < 0.05) the growth of B. bovis merozoites by approximately 50–70% on days 3 and 4 of cultivation, along with the invasion of merozoites by approximately 60% within 4 h of incubation when compared to the control groups. Conclusion Our results indicate that the epitope predicted from the PAN motif of BbAMA-1 domain I is neutralization-sensitive and may serve as a target antigen for vaccine development against bovine babesiosis caused by B. bovis.



2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta G. Silva ◽  
Reginaldo G. Bastos ◽  
J. Stone Doggett ◽  
Michael K. Riscoe ◽  
Sovitj Pou ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The most common apicomplexan parasites causing bovine babesiosis are Babesia bovis and B. bigemina, while B. caballi and Theileria equi are responsible for equine piroplasmosis. Treatment and control of these diseases are usually achieved using potentially toxic chemotherapeutics, such as imidocarb diproprionate, but drug-resistant parasites are emerging, and alternative effective and safer drugs are needed. Endochin-like quinolones (ELQ)-300 and ELQ-316 proved safe and efficacious against related apicomplexans, such as Plasmodium spp., and ELQ-316 was also effective against B. microti, without showing toxicity in mammals.Methods: Inhibitory effects of ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 were assessed on the growth of cultured B. bovis, B. bigemina, B. caballi and T. equi. Percentage of parasitized erythrocytes was measured by flow cytometry. Effect of the ELQ drugs on the viability of horse and bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was assessed by monitoring cell metabolic activity using a colorimetric assay.Results: We calculated IC50 ranging from 0.04 to 0.37 nM for ELQ-300, and from 0.002 to 0.1 nM for ELQ-316 at 72 h among all cultured parasites tested. None of the parasites tested were able to replicate in cultures in the presence of the ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 at IC100, which range from 1.3 to 5.7 nM for ELQ-300 and from 1.0 to 6.0 nM for ELQ-316 at 72 h. Neither ELQ-300 nor ELQ-316 altered the viability of equine and bovine PBMC at their IC100 in in vitro testing. Conclusions: ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 showed significant inhibitory activity on the main parasites responsible for bovine babesiosis and equine piroplasmosis at doses that are tolerable to host cells. These ELQ drugs may be viable candidates for developing alternative protocols for the treatment of bovine babesiosis and equine piroplasmosis.



Author(s):  
U. Rauf ◽  
I. Rashid ◽  
H. Akbar ◽  
K. Majeed ◽  
I. Raheem ◽  
...  

Background: Babesia bigemina is the cause of bovine babesiosis. B. bigemina-infected red blood cells (iRBCs) were passaged in vitro for the attenuation. Methods: We cultured Pakistani isolate of the parasite in three different culture media. Whole blood was collected from splenectomized and intact crossbred young calves. The parameters included were hematological profile, catalase activity, osmotic fragility and lipid profile. Cell culture media (M-199, RPMI 1640 and DMEM) were used to find out the longevity of parasites iRBCs.Result: Highest PPE level was found up to 6.0% on 72 h post-culture in M-199 medium. Furthermore, no significant difference in catalase activity while significant difference in osmotic fragility were observed. However, lipid profile was significantly less in infected animals except in Babesia-infected. M-199 was the most appropriate medium for the in vitro cultivation of B. bigemina. Our findings would help us for in vitro cultivation of babesia-infected RBCs for its attenuation.



2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta G. Silva ◽  
Reginaldo G. Bastos ◽  
J. Stone Doggett ◽  
Michael K. Riscoe ◽  
Sovitj Pou ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The most common apicomplexan parasites causing bovine babesiosis are Babesia bovis and B. bigemina, while B. caballi and Theileria equi are responsible for equine piroplasmosis. Treatment and control of these diseases are usually achieved using potentially toxic chemotherapeutics, such as imidocarb diproprionate, but drug-resistant parasites are emerging, and alternative effective and safer drugs are needed. Endochin-like quinolones (ELQ)-300 and ELQ-316 proved safe and efficacious against related apicomplexans, such as Plasmodium spp., and ELQ-316 was also effective against B. microti, without showing toxicity in mammals.Methods: Inhibitory effects of ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 were assessed on the growth of cultured B. bovis, B. bigemina, B. caballi and T. equi. Percentage of parasitized erythrocytes was measured by flow cytometry. Effect of the ELQ drugs on the viability of horse and bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was assessed by monitoring cell metabolic activity using a colorimetric assay.Results: We calculated IC50 ranging from 0.04 to 0.37 nM for ELQ-300, and from 0.002 to 0.1 nM for ELQ-316 at 72 h among all cultured parasites tested. None of the parasites tested were able to replicate in cultures in the presence of the ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 at IC100, which range from 1.3 to 5.7 nM for ELQ-300 and from 1.0 to 6.0 nM for ELQ-316 at 72 h. Neither ELQ-300 nor ELQ-316 altered the viability of equine and bovine PBMC at their IC100 in in vitro testing. Conclusions: ELQ-300 and ELQ-316 showed significant inhibitory activity on the main parasites responsible for bovine babesiosis and equine piroplasmosis at doses that are tolerable to host cells. These ELQ drugs may be viable candidates for developing alternative protocols for the treatment of bovine babesiosis and equine piroplasmosis.



2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amarin Rittipornlertrak ◽  
Boondarika Nambooppha ◽  
Anucha Muenthaisong ◽  
Veerasak Punyapornwithaya ◽  
Saruda Tiwananthagorn ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Bovine babesiosis caused by Babesia bovis (B. bovis) affects the cattle industry worldwide with high mobility and mortality. Live-attenuated vaccines are currently used in some of the endemic countries, but their wide use is limited due to various reasons. Although recombinant vaccines have been proposed as an alternative to the live vaccines, such vaccines are not commercially available to date. Apical membrane antigen-1 (AMA-1) is one of the leading candidates for vaccine development against diseases caused by apicomplexan parasite species. In this study, we predicted an epitope from the plasminogen, apple and nematode (PAN) motif of domain I in the B. bovis AMA-1 (BbAMA-1) using a combination of linear and conformational B-cell epitope prediction software. The selected epitope was bioinformatically analyzed, synthesized as a peptide (sBbAMA-1), and then used to immunize a rabbit. Results The anti-sBbAMA-1 serum obtained was evaluated for its growth- and invasion-inhibitory effects on B. bovis merozoites in vitro. Our results demonstrated that the predicted BbAMA-1 epitope, which is located on surface-exposed α-helix of PAN motif in domain I at the apex area, elicits antibodies capable of recognizing the native BbAMA-1 in immunoassays. Importantly, as compared to the control groups, the rabbit anti-sBbAMA-1 serum at dilution of 1:5 significantly inhibited (p < 0.05) the growth of B. bovis merozoites by approximately 50–70% on day 3 and 4 of cultivation and the invasion of merozoites by approximately 60% within 4 h of incubation. Conclusion Our results indicate the epitope predicted from the PAN motif of BbAMA-1 domain I is neutralization-sensitive and may serve as a target antigen for vaccine development against bovine babesiosis caused by B. bovis.



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