The acidocalcisome vacuolar transporter chaperone 4 catalyzes the synthesis of polyphosphate in insect-stages of Trypanosoma brucei and T. cruzi.

ABSTRACT: Polyphosphate is a polymer of inorganic phosphate found in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Polyphosphate typically accumulates in acidic, calcium-rich organelles known as acidocalcisomes, and recent research demonstrated that vacuolar transporter chaperone 4 catalyzes its synthesis in yeast. The human pathogens Trypanosoma brucei and T. cruzi possess vacuolar transporter chaperone 4 homologs. We demonstrate that T. cruzi vacuolar transporter chaperone 4 localizes to acidocalcisomes of epimastigotes by immunofluorescence and immuno-electron microscopy and that the recombinant catalytic region of the T. cruzi enzyme is a polyphosphate kinase. RNA interference of the T. brucei enzyme in procyclic form parasites reduced short chain polyphosphate levels and resulted in accumulation of pyrophos

SUBMITTER: Ulrich PN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3959231 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar-Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature