Luísa Figueiredo Lab

Biology of Parasitism

Parasitism is the ability of an organism to exploit its host. The African trypanosome is a single-celled parasite responsible for a fatal disease in humans (sleeping sickness) and a chronic disease in cattle (Nagana). Our group is interested in understanding the disease mechanisms caused by two species of African trypanosomes (Trypanosoma brucei and Trypanosoma congolense), characterizing both parasite and host factors. Our group has two main interests:

TISSUE TROPISM – We have recently discovered that adipose tissue is an important reservoir of parasites in mouse infection and that the parasites adapt functionally to the tissue (1, 2). These unexpected observations raised important questions. How do parasites move between tissues? What is the selective advantage to accumulate in this tissue? Are parasites equally susceptible to drug treatment? Is adipose tissue an immunologically inactive organ (3)? How do parasites enter or leave tissues (2)? What is the heterogeneity of the parasite population in each tissue?

GENE REGULATION and ANTIGENIC VARIATION – Our group are interested in understanding the mechanisms that regulate antigenic variation, a process that allows trypanosomes to escape the host’s immune response (4). Currently, we are interested in understanding the importance of non-coding RNAs (5) and epigenetic modifications in the regulation of genes underlying antigenic variation (6).

In 2017, our laboratory was awarded an ERC consolidation grant. Previous grants were from HHMI, EMBO, FCT and Gulbenkian. Students and post-docs have been awarded fellowships from Marie Curie, Human Frontiers and FCT.

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