Functional insights into Plasmodium actin-depolymerizing factor interactions with phosphoinositides.

ABSTRACT: Malaria is caused by protozoan parasites, Plasmodium spp., that belong to the phylum Apicomplexa. The life cycle of these parasites depends on two different hosts; the definitive host, or vector, is a mosquito, and the intermediate host is a vertebrate, such as human. Malaria parasites use a unique form of substrate-dependent motility for host cell invasion and egress, which is dependent on an actomyosin motor complex called the glideosome. Apicomplexa have a small set of actin regulators, which are poorly conserved compared to their equivalents in higher eukaryotes. Actin-depolymerizing factors (ADFs) are key regulators responsible for accelerating actin turnover in eukaryotic cells. The activity of ADFs is regulated by membrane phosphoinositides. Malaria parasites express two ADF isoform

SUBMITTER: Lasiwa D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12281513 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature