The Plasmodium berghei Ca(2+)/H(+) exchanger, PbCAX, is essential for tolerance to environmental Ca(2+) during sexual development.

ABSTRACT: Ca(2+) contributes to a myriad of important cellular processes in all organisms, including the apicomplexans, Plasmodium and Toxoplasma. Due to its varied and essential roles, free Ca(2+) is tightly regulated by complex mechanisms. These mechanisms are therefore of interest as putative drug targets. One pathway in Ca(2+) homeostatic control in apicomplexans uses a Ca(2+)/H(+) exchanger (a member of the cation exchanger family, CAX). The P. falciparum CAX (PfCAX) has recently been characterised in asexual blood stage parasites. To determine the physiological importance of apicomplexan CAXs, tagging and knock-out strategies were undertaken in the genetically tractable T. gondii and P. berghei parasites. In addition, a yeast heterologous expression system was used to study the function of api

SUBMITTER: Guttery DS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3585132 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature