Visceral leishmaniasis is a fatal human disease caused by the intracellular protozoan parasite Leishmania chagasi that is captured by host cells in a process involving classics receptors mediated phagocytosis. The search for molecules involved in this process is important to design strategies to disease control. In this work, we verified the presence of heparin-binding protein (HBP) in L. chagasi promastigotes forms. HBP is a lectin of the group of ubiquitous proteins, whose main characteristic is to bind to carbohydrates present in glycoproteins or glycolipids, which is poorly studied in Leishmania species. L. chagasi HBP (HBPLc) was purified by affinity chromatography using heparin-agarose column in FPLC automated system. Its localization in the parasite was assessed by immunolabeling and electronic transmission microscopy tests using anti-HBPLc polyclonal antibodies, which showed HBP spread over the parasite outer surface and internally next to the kynetoplast. In addition, we verified that HBPLc participates in the process of parasite infection, since its blocking with heparin generated a partial reduction in the internalization of Leishmania by RAW macrophages "in vitro". According to these results, it is believed that, in further "in vivo" studies, interference on this parasitic protein may provide us prophylactic and therapeutic alternatives against visceral leishmaniasis.
Keywords: Heparin; Lectins; Leishmania; Visceral leishmaniasis.
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