Phenotypic Screen of Early-Developing Larvae of the Blood Fluke, Schistosoma mansoni, using RNA Interference (original) (raw)
Figure 7
Quantification of differential EF1α protein levels in S. mansoni sporocysts post-dsRNA exposure.
Western blots of SDS-PAGE separated total proteins extracted from sporocysts treated for 7 days with elongation factor1α (EF1α) or GFP (control) dsRNA. A rabbit anti-EF1α was used to detect a 50 kDa S. mansoni EF1α, while a rabbit anti-SmGST26 antibody served as both a protein specificity and loading control. Note the presence of EF1α protein in dsRNA-GFP treated-sporocysts, but reduced reactivity in EF1α-dsRNA-silenced parasites. Significant knockdown of EF1α protein in EF1α dsRNA-treated parasites was confirmed by optical densitometry comparing protein band intensities of test and control dsRNA treatment groups after anti-GST26 normalization of each band. The bar graph shows an 80% reduction (+/−S.E.) in dsRNA-induced EF1α protein level in EF1α dsRNA-treated sporocysts relative to GFP controls. Statistical analyses were performed using Students _t_-test. *_P_≤0.05; N = 3.