A membrane-bound eIF2 alpha kinase located in endosomes is regulated by heme and controls differentiation and ROS levels in Trypanosoma cruzi.

ABSTRACT: Translation initiation has been described as a key step for the control of growth and differentiation of several protozoan parasites in response to environmental changes. This occurs by the activation of protein kinases that phosphorylate the alpha subunit of the translation initiation factor 2 (eIF2α), which decreases translation, and in higher eukaryotes favors the expression of stress remedial response genes. However, very little is known about the signals that activate eIF2α kinases in protozoan parasites. Here, we characterized an eIF2α kinase of Trypanosoma cruzi (TcK2), the agent of Chagas' disease, as a transmembrane protein located in organelles that accumulate nutrients in proliferating parasite forms. We found that heme binds specifically to the catalytic domain of the kinase, i

SUBMITTER: da Silva Augusto L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4450062 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature