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Morphogenesis during division and griseofulvin-induced changes of the microtubular cytoskeleton in the parasitic protist, Trichomonas vaginalis

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Abstract

The behavior of microtubular structures during division was followed by immunofluorescence in Trichomonas vaginalis using an anti-α-tubulin monoclonal antibody together with nuclear staining by DAPI, allowing us to describe successive mitotic stages. In contrast to recent reports, we showed that: (1) the microtubular axostyle-pelta complex depolymerized during division, (2) the flagella were assembled during mitosis, and (3) the flagellar number was restored in each daughter kinetid before cytokinesis. Observation of griseofulvin-treated T. vaginalis cells revealed that the elongation of the mitotic spindle or paradesmosis was not the main motile force separating the daughter kinetids to opposite poles during division, suggesting the existence of other mechanisms and/or molecules involved in this morphogenetic event. Examination of treated cells re-incubated in fresh medium showed the nucleation of microtubules radiating from the perinuclear area, the origin of which is discussed. Finally, we confirm the effectiveness of griseofulvin against T. vaginalis and propose that this antifungal drug could be a promising antitrichomonal agent.

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Acknowledgements

This work was funded by the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, and the Institut Pasteur of Lille.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut Pasteur, Unité Mixte INSERM-IPL U547, 1 Rue du Professeur Calmette, B.P. 245, 59019, Lille cedex, France

    C. Noël, D. Gerbod, M. Capron & E. Viscogliosi

  2. Département Eaux et Environnement, Laboratoire de Recherche Appliquée, Institut Pasteur, 1 Rue du Professeur Calmette, B.P. 245, 59019, Lille cedex, France

    P. Delgado-Viscogliosi

  3. Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, 3529–6270 University Boulevard, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada

    N. M. Fast

  4. Institut de Biologie, Institut Pasteur, INSERM-IFR 17, 1 Rue du Professeur Calmette, B.P. 245, 59019 , Lille cedex, France

    A. Ben Younes

  5. Laboratoire de Génie Enzymatique et Cellulaire, Université de Technologie de Compiègne, UMR CNRS 6022, B.P. 20529, 60205 , Compiègne cedex, France

    O. Chose & A. Roseto

Authors
  1. C. Noël
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  2. D. Gerbod
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  3. P. Delgado-Viscogliosi
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  4. N. M. Fast
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  5. A. Ben Younes
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  6. O. Chose
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  7. A. Roseto
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  8. M. Capron
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  9. E. Viscogliosi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to E. Viscogliosi.

Additional information

C. Noël, D. Gerbod and P. Delgado-Viscogliosi were equally involved in this work and should be considered as first author

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Noël, C., Gerbod, D., Delgado-Viscogliosi, P. et al. Morphogenesis during division and griseofulvin-induced changes of the microtubular cytoskeleton in the parasitic protist, Trichomonas vaginalis . Parasitol Res 89, 487–494 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-002-0811-4

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