Proteomic profile in lesions of patients with sporotricosis

• Grant number: 22/12224-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: April 01, 2023
• End date: March 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Pathological Anatomy and Clinical Pathology
• Principal Investigator: Gil Benard
• Grantee: Ana Paula Carvalho dos Reis
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FM). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The outbreaks of sporotrichosis in Brazil by zoonotic transmission have been increasing and reaching alarming rates. The recent hyperendemic sporotrichosis caused by the species S. brasiliensis, which started in Rio de Janeiro, has already reached all Brazilian regions and some neighboring countries, such as Argentina and Paraguay. The causative agents belong to the pathogenic clade of the Sporothrix genus: Sporothrix schenckii senso stricto, Sporothrix brasiliensis, Sporothrix luriei and Sporothrix globosa. These species show significant differences in geographic distribution, biochemical properties, degree of virulence, disease patterns and response to therapy, also showing differential abilities to evade the immune system. Little is known about the host's immune response to different agents of sporotrichosis, and most of these reports are focused on S. schenckii, which shows a mixed pattern of responses (Th1, Th2, Th17). S. brasiliensis, which has recently been reported to be more virulent than S. sckenckii sensu stricto - not only in experimental systems (in vitro and murine models), but also from observations of clinical practice, in which S. brasiliensis is associated with atypical clinical forms, including spread to deep organs. However, most of these studies only assess the in vitro immune response in S. brasiliensis infection, and there is a lack of data on the mechanisms of the immune response in patients with sporotrichosis and, especially, in situ in skin lesions. Therefore, we propose to perform a comparative proteomic analysis of lesions in patients with different clinical forms of sporotrichosis to identify proteins such as IL-1², IL-17 and TNF-± that may be related to the inflammatory process and tissue damage. The understanding of these pathways may contribute to better management of this pathogen. (AU)