Schistosoma mansoni excretory-secretory products stimulate a p38 signalling pathway in Biomphalaria glabrata embryonic cells.

Following infection with Schistosoma mansoni larvae, haemocytes of resistant Biomphalaria glabrata snails execute a rapid defence during which they migrate towards and encapsulate the parasites. Such immediate and precise responses are thought to depend on signal transduction cascades though the signalling components involved remain largely unknown. It is proposed that mitogen-activated protein kinases may play a role in B. glabrata immune signalling, in particular p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases, which are known to be associated with stress and inflammatory signalling. Using degenerate PCR followed by Rapid Amplification of cDNA Ends a full-length p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase-like cDNA was cloned from both the B. glabrata embryonic (Bge) cell line (Bge-p38) and haemocytes (Bgh-p38). In addition, B. glabrata p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase activation was examined at the protein level in Western blot analyses using an antibody that specifically recognises activated/diphosphorylated p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase. Results showed that Bge cell p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase was activated/phosphorylated following 30 min incubation with anisomycin, an established p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase activator. Furthermore, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase was also activated after only 5 min exposure to either the beta-glucan polymer laminarin or S. mansoni larval excretory-secretory products. In a comparative study, activated haemocyte p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase could also be detected using the anti-phosphorylated p38 antibody following cell treatment with anisomycin. However, in contrast with Bge cells, haemocyte p38 was not activated by either excretory-secretory products or laminarin treatments, suggesting fundamental differences in the role of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase in signal transduction pathways between haemocytes and Bge cells.