Glycogen phosphorylase in Acanthamoeba spp.: determining the role of the enzyme during the encystment process using RNA interference.

ABSTRACT: Acanthamoeba infections are difficult to treat due to often late diagnosis and the lack of effective and specific therapeutic agents. The most important reason for unsuccessful therapy seems to be the existence of a double-wall cyst stage that is highly resistant to the available treatments, causing reinfections. The major components of the Acanthamoeba cyst wall are acid-resistant proteins and cellulose. The latter has been reported to be the major component of the inner cyst wall. It has been demonstrated previously that glycogen is the main source of free glucose for the synthesis of cellulose in Acanthamoeba, partly as glycogen levels fall during the encystment process. In other lower eukaryotes (e.g., Dictyostelium discoideum), glycogen phosphorylase has been reported to be the main t

SUBMITTER: Lorenzo-Morales J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2268508 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature