Molecular features of Myosin F adapted for driving actin flows in <i>Toxoplasma gondii</i>.

ABSTRACT: Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) is a single-celled Apicomplexan parasite that relies on a highly polarized endomembrane system for its invasion into and survival within host cells. Recent advancements in imaging technologies have revealed that vesicle transport and organization of organelles in the endomembrane pathway requires a highly dynamic actin cytoskeleton. These dynamics in turn rely on the activity of Myosin F (MyoF), a molecular motor unique to Alveolates. The defining characteristic of this molecular motor is a WD40 beta-propeller domain, exclusively found in this class of myosin. To understand the mechanism by which MyoF controls the dynamics and organization of actin, we studied the biophysical properties of the purified motor in vitro. A MyoF construct lack

SUBMITTER: Sladewski TE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12621969 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature