TY  - JOUR
T1  - Comparative Anti-Leishmanial Effects of Two ssDNA Aptamers Targeting Poly(A)-Binding Protein in Leishmania donovani Amastigotes
A1  - Haimn Abdulbassit Tawfiq
A1  - Ahmed Ali Mohammed
A1  - Yassir Mustafa Kamal Al Mulla Hummadi
JF  - Journal of Biochemical Technology
JO  - J Biochem Technol
SN  - 0974-2328
Y1  - 2026
VL  - 17
IS  - 2
DO  - 10.51847/g8pT52L1nd
SP  - 60
EP  - 70
N2  - Visceral leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania donovani is still a life-threatening disease with limited ‎therapeutic options. The poly(A)-binding protein (PABP) is essential for post-transcriptional gene ‎regulation in trypanosomatids and represents a parasite-privileged drug target. To comparatively evaluate two mechanistically distinct PABP-targeting ssDNA aptamers, AP-11 ‎‎(poly(A)-competitive) and AP-7 (non-competitive), complexed with Lipofectamine 2000 against L. ‎donovani amastigotes. ‎Growth inhibition was assessed by MTT assay in amastigotes at 24 and 48 hours. Cytotoxicity was determined for selectivity index calculation in the RAW 264.7 cell line (Macrophage). PABP ‎expression was demonstrated by western blot in both axenic culture and intracellular amastigote ‎models. ‎AP-11/LF demonstrated 4-6-times greater potency than AP-7/LF (IC₅₀: 130/80 nM versus 550/460 ‎nM at 24/48 h). Both complexes exhibited favorable selectivity indices (47-84). AP-11/LF depleted ‎PABP by >93% in axenic culture and about 80% in intracellular amastigotes (p < 0.01), whereas ‎AP-7/LF produced moderate, inconsistently significant reductions (45-50%). ‎ Functional disruption of the PABP–poly(A) interaction, rather than binding affinity alone, determines antiparasitic potency, validating PABP as a pharmacologically tractable antileishmanial target. Remarkably, this is the first in vitro experimental study to demonstrate that aptamers targeting the PABP complexed with lipofectamine 2000 exert direct anti-leishmanial activity at both the axenic culture and intracellular levels.
UR  - https://jbiochemtech.com/article/comparative-anti-leishmanial-effects-of-two-ssdna-aptamers-targeting-polya-binding-protein-in-leis-icr9yz5dzjf60oa
ER  -