Spatial Transcriptomics of parasites – 2D transcriptome analyses of tissues in the liver fluke Fasciola hepatica

Abstract text

Introduction

Fasciolosis is a food-borne trematode infection, caused by the liver fluke Fasciola hepatica and related species. The disease has considerable impact on human and animal health worldwide and costs the global livestock industry several billions of dollars per year. Limited therapeutic options and increasing anthelminthic resistance complicate sustainable control and highlight the need for novel anthelmintics.

Objectives

In order to identify new drug targets, it is first necessary to better understand the fluke"s biology, including its organ function and organ-specific gene expression. The cutting-edge technology Spatial Transcriptomics (ST) allows studying gene expression in a new dimension.

Material & Methods

Here, we applied Visium Spatial Gene Expression Solution (10x Genomics) on adult F. hepatica.

Results

Our ST data enables us to visualize gene expression in 2D, according to the original morphological context. This provides insights into tissue-specific gene expression throughout the fluke"s body. Gene expression profiles for eight different tissues, such as intestine, tegument and reproductive organs were identified and selected marker genes were validated by in situ hybridization. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis revealed characteristic biological processes and molecular functions associated with each cluster. Finally, some genes with interesting spatial expression patterns were selected for functional characterization using RNA interference.

Conclusion

Taken together, this work provides the first spatial transcriptome of a parasitic flatworm. The dataset facilitates the design of further experiments that aim at characterizing tissue-specific gene function. Some of these genes may serve as new potential drug targets to better treat fasciolosis in the future.