Calcium Signaling throughout the Toxoplasma gondii Lytic Cycle: A STUDY USING GENETICALLY ENCODED CALCIUM INDICATORS.

ABSTRACT: Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular parasite that invades host cells, creating a parasitophorous vacuole where it communicates with the host cell cytosol through the parasitophorous vacuole membrane. The lytic cycle of the parasite starts with its exit from the host cell followed by gliding motility, conoid extrusion, attachment, and invasion of another host cell. Here, we report that Ca(2+) oscillations occur in the cytosol of the parasite during egress, gliding, and invasion, which are critical steps of the lytic cycle. Extracellular Ca(2+) enhances each one of these processes. We used tachyzoite clonal lines expressing genetically encoded calcium indicators combined with host cells expressing transiently expressed calcium indicators of different colors, and we measured Ca(2+)

SUBMITTER: Borges-Pereira L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4646405 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature