Structural Features of Apicomplexan Pore-Forming Proteins and Their Roles in Parasite Cell Traversal and Egress.

ABSTRACT: Apicomplexan parasites cause diseases, including malaria and toxoplasmosis, in a range of hosts, including humans. These intracellular parasites utilize pore-forming proteins that disrupt host cell membranes to either traverse host cells while migrating through tissues or egress from the parasite-containing vacuole after replication. This review highlights recent insight gained from the newly available three-dimensional structures of several known or putative apicomplexan pore-forming proteins that contribute to cell traversal or egress. These new structural advances suggest that parasite pore-forming proteins use distinct mechanisms to disrupt host cell membranes at multiple steps in parasite life cycles. How proteolytic processing, secretion, environment, and the accessibility of lipid r

SUBMITTER: Guerra AJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5618198 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature