Comparative study of proteomic biomarkers of gastrointestinal nematode infection in different sheep breeds

Abstract

Haemonchus contortus is the gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) species that most parasites sheep and goats in tropical and subtropical regions. Due to the high prevalence and pathogenicity by hematophagy, it causes severe anemia, submandibular edema and deaths. Post-genomics tools, such as proteomics, allow the identification of differentially expressed genes and differentially abundant proteins and metabolites between two conditions of a given factor. Thus, the detection of protein profiles that occur in more parasitized animals may be of great interest for the identification of sheep that effectively need anthelmintic treatment. As a result, the parasites are preserved in refugia through Targeted Selective Treatment (TST) strategies for the animals, extension of the period of efficacy of the anthelmintics and, when its use is necessary, parasite control will be more efficient. This project aims to characterize the plasma proteomic profile of sheep breeds susceptible and resistant to GIN infection, aiming at the future development of a diagnostic tool and the understanding of the resistance mechanisms involved in the Santa Inês, White Dorper and Texel sheep breeds. In this way, the development of methodologies, processes and products for the identification of sheep with higher rates of infection by GIN, in addition to the detection of breeds/individuals more resistant to these parasites and the understanding of the resistance mechanisms involved in the different hosts, is presented as a topic of great relevance for sheep farming, which can be extended to goat farming. It also addresses public health issues and the consumer population, which is increasingly demanding in terms of quality, certification and safety. (AU)