Comparative Genomic and Transcriptomic Profiling Revealed the Molecular Basis of Starch Promoting the Growth and Proliferation of <i>Balantioides coli</i>
Lizhuo Zhao,
Kai He,
Chuanqi Jiang,
Guangying Wang,
Suhui Hu,
Tianqi Wang,
Weifeng Qian,
Zhiguo Wei,
Jie Xiong,
Wei Miao,
Wenchao Yan
Affiliations
Lizhuo Zhao
Parasitology Laboratory, College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China
Kai He
Parasitology Laboratory, College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China
Chuanqi Jiang
Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China
Guangying Wang
Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China
Suhui Hu
Parasitology Laboratory, College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China
Tianqi Wang
Parasitology Laboratory, College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China
Weifeng Qian
Parasitology Laboratory, College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China
Zhiguo Wei
Parasitology Laboratory, College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China
Jie Xiong
Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China
Wei Miao
Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China
Wenchao Yan
Parasitology Laboratory, College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China
Carbohydrates are the main source of nutrition for B. coli, supplying energy for cell growth and development. The research aimed at investigating the mechanism of starch on the growth and replication of B. coli. Single-cell separation was used to isolate single trophozoites of B. coli under a stereomicroscope, transcriptomic profiling was conducted based on the SMART-seq2 single-cell RNA-seq method. Comparative genomic analysis was performed on B. coli and eight other ciliates to obtain specific and expanded gene families of B. coli. GO and KEGG enrichment analysis were used to analyze the key genes of B. coli under the action of starch in the present study. The results of single-cell RNA-seq depicts starch affected the growth and replication of B. coli in two ways: (1) the cell cycle was positively promoted by the activation of the cAMP/PKA signaling pathway via glycolysis; (2) the cell autophagy was suppressed through the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. Genes involved in endocytosis, carbohydrate utilization, and the cAMP/PKA signaling pathway were highly enriched in both specific and expanded gene families of B. coli. Starch can be ingested and hydrolyzed into glucose, in turn affecting various biological processes of B. coli. The molecular mechanism of the effect of starch on the growth and proliferation of B. coli by promoting cell cycle and inhibiting the autophagy of trophozoites has been elucidated in our study.
