Transcriptomic analysis of the salivary gland of medicinal leech Hirudo nipponia
Research article published in PloS one (2018)
Abstract
Hirudo nipponia (known as Shui Zhi in Chinese) is a well-known Chinese medicine with numerous active ingredients in its body, especially in its saliva. This native Chinese blood-sucking leech has been used for therapeutic purposes since before 100 AD. Modern Chinese physicians use it for a wide range of diseases. Genomic data and molecular information about the pharmacologically active substances produced by this medicinal leech are presently unavailable despite this organism's medicinal importance. In this study, we performed transcriptome profiling of the salivary glands of medicinal leech H. nipponia using the Illumina platform. In total, 84,657,362 clean reads were assembled into 50,535 unigenes. The obtained unigenes were compared to public databases. Furthermore, a unigene sequence similarity search and comparisons with the whole transcriptome of medical leech were performed to identify potential proteins. Finally, more than 21 genes were predicted to be involved in anticoagulatory, antithrombotic, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antitumor processes, which might play important roles in the treatment of various diseases. This study is the first analysis of a sialotranscriptome in H. nipponia. The transcriptome profile will shed light on its genetic background and provide a useful tool to deepen our understanding of the medical value of H. nipponia.
Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.
Resumen
Hirudo nipponia (known as Shui Zhi in Chinese) is a well-known Chinese medicine with numerous active ingredients in its body, especially in its saliva.
Por qué esto importa para la hirudoterapia
Este estudio realizó un perfilado transcriptómico basado en Illumina de las glándulas salivales de Hirudo nipponia, una sanguijuela medicinal utilizada desde hace mucho tiempo en la medicina tradicional china, ensamblando más de 50.000 unigenes e identificando más de 21 genes cuya participación se predice en procesos anticoagulantes, antitrombóticos, antibacterianos, antiinflamatorios y antitumorales. Este trabajo es directamente relevante para la hirudoterapia y el secretoma salival de la sanguijuela, ya que proporciona el primer catálogo de sialotranscriptoma para H. nipponia y postula moléculas bioactivas candidatas que podrían sustentar los efectos terapéuticos de la saliva de sanguijuela, orientando potencialmente futuras caracterizaciones funcionales. Sin embargo, las identificaciones de genes son predicciones computacionales basadas en búsquedas de similitud de secuencia, sin validación funcional, confirmación a nivel de proteína ni datos de resultados farmacológicos presentados. La relevancia para aplicaciones terapéuticas reales sigue siendo indirecta y requiere verificación experimental posterior de las actividades biológicas de estos genes candidatos.
Citación
Transcriptomic analysis of the salivary gland of medicinal leech Hirudo nipponia.
Lu Z et al. · PloS one, 2018
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Añadido a la biblioteca ASH: March 18, 2026 · Última actualización del sitio: June 18, 2026