Trypanosoma
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyA Trypanosoma brucei ORFeome-Based Gain-of-Function Library Identifies Genes That Promote Survival during Melarsoprol TreatmentTrypanosomatid parasites threaten the health of more than 1 billion people worldwide. Because their genomes are highly diverged from those of well-established eukaryotes, conservation is not always useful in assigning gene functions. However, it is precisely among the trypanosomatid-specific genes that ideal therapeutic targets might be found. Forward genetics approaches are an effective way to identify novel gene functions. We used an...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyIdentification of Positive Chemotaxis in the Protozoan Pathogen Trypanosoma bruceiAlmost all living things need to be able to move, whether it is toward desirable environments or away from danger. For vector-borne parasites, successful transmission and infection require that these organisms be able to sense where they are and use signals from their environment to direct where they go next, a process known as chemotaxis. Here, we show that Trypanosoma...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyGlucose Signaling Is Important for Nutrient Adaptation during Differentiation of Pleomorphic African TrypanosomesAs the African trypanosome Trypanosoma brucei completes its life cycle, it encounters many different environments. Adaptation to these environments includes modulation of metabolic pathways to parallel the availability of nutrients. Here, we describe how the blood-dwelling life cycle stages of the African trypanosome, which consume glucose to meet their nutritional...
Commentary | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyNovel Observations Concerning Differentiation of Bloodstream-Form Trypanosomes to the Form That Is Adapted for Growth in Tsetse FliesSalivarian trypanosomes grow in mammals, where they depend on glucose, and as procyclic forms in tsetse flies, where they metabolize proline. Differentiation of bloodstream forms to nongrowing stumpy forms, and to procyclic forms, has been studied extensively, but reconciling the results is tricky because investigators have used parasites with various differentiation competences and different media for procyclic-form culture.
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Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyLife Stage-Specific Cargo Receptors Facilitate Glycosylphosphatidylinositol-Anchored Surface Coat Protein Transport in Trypanosoma bruceiAfrican trypanosomes are protozoan parasites that cause African sleeping sickness. Critical to the success of the parasite is the variant surface glycoprotein (VSG), which covers the parasite cell surface and which is essential for evasion of the host immune system. VSG is membrane bound by a glycolipid (GPI) anchor that is attached in the earliest compartment of the secretory pathway, the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). We have previously...