Genome Codes of Tsetse Fly Helps Develop Treatment for Sleeping Sickness: Study

Genetic data of tsetse fly can help develop treatments for the African sleeping sickness, according to a study.

Trypanosomiasis popularly known as sleeping sickness is a paratactic disease transmitted by Glosinna morsitans insect or the tsetse fly. According to the data by the World Health Organization, sleeping sickness occurs in 36 sub-Saharan African countries and affects nearly 70 million people.

A team of 140 experts and researchers from the Yale School of Public Health University sequenced the genetic code for proteins that explains the unique biology of the fly in transmitting illnesses to humans and animals. They mapped the fly's genome that contains about 366 million letters of code, which is equal to 10 percent of codes in human genome.

These flies have about 12,000 genes. These flies have advanced sensory system that helps them track hosts and mates by smell and vision. Tsetse flies are very similar to the common fruit flies but have different reproductive feature; they give birth and also feed the young ones by lactating.

"This is a major milestone for the tsetse research community," Geoffrey M. Attardo, study author and research scientist at the Yale School of Public Health said in a news release. "Our hope is that this resource will facilitate functional research and be an ongoing contribution to the vector biology community."

The study also identified certain behavioral responses of the insects like attraction for blue and black colors. These findings will help in understanding of key processes and also develop methods to treat and prevent disease spread in African Countries.

The drugs used to treat sleeping sickness are very expensive and have many harmful side-effects. If left untreated, the disease is 100 percent fatal. The study authors believe their analysis can help eradicate the disease,

 "We are very happy to finally reach the finish line," Serap Aksoy professor from the School of Public Health said. "Our hope is that tsetse research will now enjoy broader participation from the vector community and lead to improved and novel methods to eliminate disease."

The research was funded by various privates and public institutions including the Welcome Trust, the World Health Organization Special Program for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases, and the Ambrose Monell Foundation.

More information is available online in the journal Science.                              

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