Abstract

Background: Spiroplasma eriocheiris is a novel pathogen of freshwater crustaceans and is closely related to S. mirum. They have no cell wall and a helical morphology. They have the ability to infect mammals with an unclear mechanism.

Objective: In this study, our aim was to investigate the profile of protein expression in 3T6 cells infected with S. eriocheiris.

Methods: The proteome of 3T6 cells infected by S. eriocheiris was systematically investigated by iTRAQ.

Results: We identified and quantified 4915 proteins, 67 differentially proteins were found, including 30 up-regulated proteins and 37 down-regulated proteins. GO term analysis shows that dysregulation of adhesion protein , interferon and cytoskeletal regulation are associated with apoptosis. Adhesion protein Vcam1 and Interferon-induced protein GBP2, Ifit1, TAPBP, CD63 ,Arhgef2 were up-regulated. A key cytoskeletal regulatory protein, ARHGEF17 was down-regulated. KEGG pathway analysis showed the NF-kappa B signaling pathway, the MAPK signaling pathway , the Jak-STAT signaling pathway and NOD-like receptor signaling are closely related to apoptosis in vivo.

Conclusion: Analysis of the signaling pathways involved in invasion may provide new insights for understanding the infection mechanisms of S. eriocheiris.

Keywords: 3T6 cell, iTRAQ, Spiroplasma eriocheiris, pathogenic mechanism, GO term analysis, KEGG pathway analysis.