Evolutionary adaptations of doublet microtubules in trypanosomatid parasites.

ABSTRACT: The movement and pathogenicity of trypanosomatid species, the causative agents of trypanosomiasis and leishmaniasis, are dependent on a flagellum that contains an axoneme of dynein-bound doublet microtubules (DMTs). In this work, we present cryo-electron microscopy structures of DMTs from two trypanosomatid species, Leishmania tarentolae and Crithidia fasciculata, at resolutions up to 2.7 angstrom. The structures revealed 27 trypanosomatid-specific microtubule inner proteins, a specialized dynein-docking complex, and the presence of paralogous proteins that enable higher-order periodicities or proximal-distal patterning. Leveraging the genetic tractability of trypanosomatid species, we quantified the location and contribution of each structure-identified protein to swimming b

SUBMITTER: Doran MH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7617938 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature