The molecular basis of folate salvage in Plasmodium falciparum: characterization of two folate transporters.

ABSTRACT: Tetrahydrofolates are essential cofactors for DNA synthesis and methionine metabolism. Malaria parasites are capable both of synthesizing tetrahydrofolates and precursors de novo and of salvaging them from the environment. The biosynthetic route has been studied in some detail over decades, whereas the molecular mechanisms that underpin the salvage pathway lag behind. Here we identify two functional folate transporters (named PfFT1 and PfFT2) and delineate unexpected substrate preferences of the folate salvage pathway in Plasmodium falciparum. Both proteins are localized in the plasma membrane and internal membranes of the parasite intra-erythrocytic stages. Transport substrates include folic acid, folinic acid, the folate precursor p-amino benzoic acid (pABA), and the human folate catabol

SUBMITTER: Salcedo-Sora JE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3247980 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature