B4: Acetate, a secreted metabolic product of Heligmosomoides polygyrus facilitates tissue invasion and maintains chronic infection

B4: Acetate, a secreted metabolic product of Heligmosomoides polygyrus facilitates tissue invasion and maintains chronic infection

The immune system has co-evolved with the ubiquitous intestinal parasitic helminths. During this co-evolution, intestinal helminths, such as Heligmosomoides polygyrus (Hp), have developed potent mechanisms to regulate their hosts’ immune response in order to continue their symbiosis and succeed to establish chronic infections (Zaiss et al., 2013). However, the precise mechanisms that enable Hp to penetrate host tissue and modulate the gut microbiota (Zaiss et al., 2016) to promote chronic infections remain elusive. We hypothesize that acetate, a short chain fatty acid (SCFA), plays a role in both, penetration and modulation

 

Supervisor