Person: Martínez Rodrigo, Abel
Loading...
First Name
Abel
Last Name
Martínez Rodrigo
Affiliation
Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Faculty / Institute
Veterinaria
Department
Sanidad Animal
Area
Identifiers
3 results
Search Results
Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
Item A further investigation of the leishmaniosis outbreak in Madrid (Spain): low-infectivity phenotype of the Leishmania infantum BOS1FL1 isolate to establish infection in canine cells(Veterinary Immunology and Immunopathology, 2020) Viñals, Luis Miguel; Mas Zubiri, Alicia; Martínez Rodrigo, Abel; Orden Gutiérrez, José Antonio; Domínguez Bernal, Gustavo Ramón; Carrión Herrero, Francisco JavierHuman leishmaniosis caused by Leishmania infantum is a zoonotic disease, with dogs as the main reservoir in Mediterranean Basin countries. The largest European outbreak of human leishmaniosis declared in the southwestern Madrid region (Spain) is characterized by unusual epidemiological and clinical features, such as the emergence of new wild reservoirs (hares and rabbits), whereas the seroprevalence, infection, and severity of canine leishmaniosis have not substantially changed since the first studies conducted in Madrid before the outbreak. Previous studies reported that L. infantum isolates from the Madrid leishmaniosis focus displayed elevated virulence in in vivo models of infection and increased infectivity in murine target cells. With the aim of studying whether changes in the host-parasite interaction and virulence profile have developed, we first assessed the behaviour of one circulating isolate of the outbreak, IPER/ES/2012/BOS1FL1 (BOS1FL1), compared to that of a well-characterized strain from canine leishmaniosis, MCAN/ES/1996/BCN150 (BCN150), in terms of infection capacity (percentage of infected cells, representing infectivity, and number of amastigotes per infected cell, representing the intensity of infection) in canine monocytes and macrophages. BCN150 displayed significantly higher infectivity (76.82 ±4.40 vs 38.58 ±2.19; P <0.0001) and intensity of infection (3.64 ±0.13 vs 1.83 ±0.12; P <0.0001) than BOS1FL1 when interacting with canine cells. Our ROS induction results did not differ significantly between the two isolates or with the responses previously described for other L. infantum isolates. Paradoxically, increased resilience to hydrogen peroxide exposure was observed for BOS1FL1 (% viability 40.62 ±5.54 vs 26.37 ±2.93; P =0.039). Finally, we demonstrated that a decreased intracellular load of BOS1FL1 was associated with increased IFN-γ (261.21 ±26.29 vs 69.80 ±9.02; P =0.0151) and decreased IL- 10 production (165.06 ±23.87 vs 264.41 ±30.58; P =0.0002). In this study, we provide the first detailed insight into the differences between the isolate BOS1FL1 from the outbreak in Madrid and the well-characterized strain BCN150 MON-1 obtained from a dog in their response to interacting with canine cells. However, further studies are necessary to shed light on the immune mechanisms resulting in BOS1FL1 exhibiting less virulent behaviour in canine cells than in cells derived from other host species.Item Properties of virulence emergence of Leishmania infantum isolates from Phlebotomus perniciosus collected during the human leishmaniosis outbreak in Madrid, Spain. Hepatic histopathology and immunological parameters as virulence markers in the mouse model(Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, 2020) Maribel Jiménez; Mas Zubiri, Alicia; Martínez Rodrigo, Abel; Orden Gutiérrez, José Antonio; Carrión Herrero, Francisco Javier; Domínguez Bernal, Gustavo Ramón; Jiménez Martínez, María De Los ÁngelesRecent anthropic activity related to the construction of the Bosquesur Green Park in a large urban setting in Madrid (Spain) has resulted in the largest reported community outbreak of human leishmaniosis in Europe. Previous phylogenetic and molecular-typ-ing studies of parasite isolates have implicated the Leishmania infantum ITS-Lombardi genotype in this outbreak. In an unusual scenario, visceral leishmaniosis (VL) is affecting a significant number of individuals, suggesting that an increase in parasite virulence has occurred. In this work, using an in vivo BALB/c model of VL, we aimed to investigate the properties of emergent virulence of the L. infantum POL2FL7 and BOS1FL1 isolates obtained from Phlebotomus perniciosus collected in the outbreak area and compare them with those of the well-characterized strain BCN150 MON-1 isolated from a dog. The P. perniciosus specimens were collected during an entomological survey conducted in the transmission season of 2012. We observed a range of virulence phenotypes from moderately to highly aggressive after 5 weeks of infection. IV challenge of mice with outbreak isolates from sand flies induced higher splenic and liver parasite burdens, higher serological titres of specific anti-Leishmania antibodies and impaired capacities to control infection, as revealed by the arginine metabolism and low ratios of Th1/Th2 cy-tokine profiles analysed, compared with the corresponding measures evaluated in mice infected with the BCN150 strain. The BOS1FL1 isolate showed the highest degree of virulence among the isolates, superior to that of POL2FL7, as evidenced by the analysed biomarkers and the histopathological severity of liver lesions. These results provide in-sight into how L. infantum isolates from sand flies collected in the outbreak area have been able to affect not only immunosuppressed patients but also middle-aged people with normal immunocompetence in the largest human VL outbreak in Europe.Item A Tailored Approach to Leishmaniases Vaccination: Comparative Evaluation of the Efficacy and Cross-Protection Capacity of DNA vs. Peptide-Based Vaccines in a Murine Model(International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2023) Mas Zubiri, Alicia; Hurtado Morillas, Clara; Martínez Rodrigo, Abel; Orden Gutiérrez, José Antonio; Fuente López, Ricardo De La; Domínguez Bernal, Gustavo Ramón; Carrión Herrero, Francisco JavierZoonotic leishmaniases are a worldwide public health problem for which the development of effective vaccines remains a challenge. A vaccine against leishmaniases must be safe and affordable and should induce cross-protection against the different disease-causing species. In this context, the DNA vaccine pHisAK70 has been demonstrated to induce, in a murine model, a resistant phenotype against L. major, L. infantum, and L. amazonensis. Moreover, a chimeric multiepitope peptide, HisDTC, has been obtained by in silico analysis from the histone proteins encoded in the DNA vaccine and has showed its ability to activate a potent CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell protective immune response in mice against L. infantum infection. In the present study, we evaluated the plasmid DNA vaccine pHisAK70 in comparison with the peptide HisDTC (with and without saponin) against L. major and L. infantum infection. Our preliminary results showed that both formulations were able to induce a potent cellular response leading to a decrease in parasite load against L. infantum. In addition, the DNA candidate was able to induce better lesion control in mice against L. major. These preliminary results indicate that both strategies are potentially effective candidates for leishmaniases control. Furthermore, it is important to carry out such comparative studies to elucidate which vaccine candidates are the most appropriate for further development.