Comparative mitochondrial genome and transcriptome analyses reveal strain-specific features of RNA editing in Trypanosoma brucei.

ABSTRACT: Trypanosoma brucei, a kinetoplastid parasite, cycles between a tsetse fly vector and a mammalian host, undergoing profound changes in cell architecture and metabolism. Central to these transitions are modifications in mitochondrial structure, volume, and energy production. The parasite's mitochondrial genome is highly complex, comprising a few maxicircles that encode proteins and rRNAs, and thousands of minicircles that encode guide RNAs (gRNAs). Most messenger RNAs (mRNAs) sustain gRNA-directed U-insertion/deletion editing to acquire functional protein-coding sequences. Although the minicircle repertoire varies among isolates and environmental conditions, the extent and biological significance of this variability in commonly used laboratory strains remain unclear. Here, we analyzed mitoch

SUBMITTER: Zhao X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12266143 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature