The molecular dynamics of Trypanosoma brucei UDP-galactose 4'-epimerase: a drug target for African sleeping sickness.

ABSTRACT: During the past century, several epidemics of human African trypanosomiasis, a deadly disease caused by the protist Trypanosoma brucei, have afflicted sub-Saharan Africa. Over 10 000 new victims are reported each year, with hundreds of thousands more at risk. As current drug treatments are either highly toxic or ineffective, novel trypanocides are urgently needed. The T. brucei galactose synthesis pathway is one potential therapeutic target. Although galactose is essential for T. brucei survival, the parasite lacks the transporters required to intake galactose from the environment. UDP-galactose 4'-epimerase (TbGalE) is responsible for the epimerization of UDP-glucose to UDP-galactose and is therefore of great interest to medicinal chemists. Using molecular dynamics simulations, we investi

SUBMITTER: Friedman AJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3399956 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature