A Mechanistic Study on the Immunological Effects of a Novel Anti-Schistosomal Compound

Schistosomiasis is a condition caused by a parasitic worm infection that is one of the primary neglected tropical diseases. It infects approximately 250 million people every year, and it causes the second largest economic impact from any parasitic disease. There exists a treatment for Schistosomiasis; however, it is ineffective against the juvenile stages of the worm. A novel drug has been developed that has been illustrated to have efficacy against all stages of worm infection. However, before this drug can be utilized, its method of action must be determined. Preliminary single cell transcriptomic data from our lab suggests that our compound is acting to enhance the immune response of granulocytes. To further characterize the response of our novel compound, we performed a series of assays to quantify how the compound affects cellular processes, such as phagocytosis, and how this compound affects the transcriptomic state of HL60, an immortalized promyeloid cell line