Evaluation the effects of soluble total antigen of T. gondii on the expression of P2X7R gene

Toxoplasma gondii is the causative agent of toxoplasmosis. Macrophages are one of the most important immune cells against toxoplasmosis. Activation of P2X7R plays a critical role during immune response through macrophages.

This study aimed to evaluate the expression of P2X7R gene in THP-1 cell line treated by T. gondii soluble total antigen (STAg).

STAg was extracted from T. gondii tachyzoites strain RH. Upon transforming THP-1 cell line to macrophage M0, the cells were treated by different concentrations of STAg including 100, 80, 40, 20, and 10 µg for 4 h. Total RNA was extracted from cells, cDNA was synthesized, and relative quantitative real-time PCR was performed to evaluate the expression of P2X7R gene.

Results of real-time PCR revealed that except concentrations 10 and 40 µg, the other concentrations of T. gondii STAg significantly decreased the expression of P2X7R gene. The highest downregulation of P2X7R gene was observed in THP-1 sensed by the concentration 80 µg.

In addition, there was no statistically correlation between the P2X7R gene expression and the concentration of T. gondii STAg. This study showed that T. gondii STAg my affect the expression of P2X7R to help the parasite to escape from immune responses leading by macrophages.