{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]],"date-time":"2026-07-07T05:16:11Z","timestamp":1783401371585,"version":"3.54.6"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]],"date-time":"2026-07-07T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1783382400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100010568","name":"Secretaria Xeral de Investigaci\u00d3n e Desenvolvemento, Xunta de Galicia","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2021-PG042"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2021-PG042"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100010568","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Immunol."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Introduction<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      The evolutionary dynamics of multigene families are central to shaping host\u2013parasite interactions and immune outcomes. In parasitic protists, expansion and diversification of surface-associated gene families enable immune evasion and host modulation, yet these mechanisms remain poorly understood in marine ciliates.\n                      <jats:italic>Philasterides dicentrarchi<\/jats:italic>\n                      , the causative agent of scuticociliatosis, provides a relevant model to investigate how gene family evolution contributes to parasite virulence and immune interaction.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>We performed an integrated multi-omics analysis combining genome-wide screening using Hidden Markov Models, repeat annotation, phylogenetic inference, RNA-seq-based transcriptomic profiling, and LC\u2013MS\/MS analysis of the surface-associated fraction. Structural features of leishmanolysin-like (LSF) proteins were predicted using domain and membrane-targeting analyses, and expression dynamics were evaluated across early infection time points.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Genome-wide analysis identified 16 annotated LSF genes and a broader repertoire of 73 LSF-related sequences, consistent with a dynamic birth\u2013death model of multigene family evolution. This expansion was associated with a repeat-rich genomic landscape dominated by simple and low-complexity elements, suggesting that genome plasticity contributes to diversification. LSF proteins retained conserved M8 metalloprotease domains and membrane-targeting features but displayed substantial sequence and regulatory divergence. Transcriptomic data revealed rapid and coordinated upregulation at 1\u00a0h post-infection, followed by a decline at later time points. Proteomic analysis confirmed the presence of most LSF proteins at the parasite surface and demonstrated a positive correlation between transcript abundance and protein detection.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Our integrative multi-omics analysis reveals that the leishmanolysin-like family (LSF) of\n                      <jats:italic>Philasterides dicentrarchi<\/jats:italic>\n                      is a highly expanded and diversified multigene repertoire. The rapid induction of LSF transcripts during early infection and the detection of most family members in the surface-associated proteome indicate their active deployment at the host\u2013parasite interface. These findings provide new insights into the evolutionary and functional dynamics of immune-interacting multigene families in marine parasitic ciliates.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fimmu.2026.1864431","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]],"date-time":"2026-07-07T04:24:25Z","timestamp":1783398265000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Evolutionary and functional dynamics of a leishmanolysin-like immune multigene family during early infection in Philasterides dicentrarchi"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Paola","family":"Gulias","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Parasitology and Immunobiology, Institute for Research on the Aquatic Environment for Global Health (iARCUS) and Health Research Institute of Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (USC)","place":["Santiago de Compostela, Spain"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jes\u00fas","family":"Lamas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Parasitology and Immunobiology, Institute for Research on the Aquatic Environment for Global Health (iARCUS) and Health Research Institute of Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (USC)","place":["Santiago de Compostela, Spain"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rosa Ana","family":"Sueiro","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Parasitology and Immunobiology, Institute for Research on the Aquatic Environment for Global Health (iARCUS) and Health Research Institute of Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (USC)","place":["Santiago de Compostela, Spain"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ver\u00f3nica","family":"Blanco-Abad","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Parasitology and Immunobiology, Institute for Research on the Aquatic Environment for Global Health (iARCUS) and Health Research Institute of Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (USC)","place":["Santiago de Compostela, Spain"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alejandro","family":"C\u00e9s","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Parasitology and Immunobiology, Institute for Research on the Aquatic Environment for Global Health (iARCUS) and Health Research Institute of Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (USC)","place":["Santiago de Compostela, Spain"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jos\u00e9 Manuel","family":"Leiro 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