An essential, kinetoplastid-specific GDP-Fuc: β-D-Gal α-1,2-fucosyltransferase is located in the mitochondrion of <i>Trypanosoma brucei</i>.

ABSTRACT: Fucose is a common component of eukaryotic cell-surface glycoconjugates, generally added by Golgi-resident fucosyltransferases. Whereas fucosylated glycoconjugates are rare in kinetoplastids, the biosynthesis of the nucleotide sugar GDP-Fuc has been shown to be essential in Trypanosoma brucei. Here we show that the single identifiable T. brucei fucosyltransferase (TbFUT1) is a GDP-Fuc: β-D-galactose α-1,2-fucosyltransferase with an apparent preference for a Galβ1,3GlcNAcβ1-O-R acceptor motif. Conditional null mutants of TbFUT1 demonstrated that it is essential for both the mammalian-infective bloodstream form and the insect vector-dwelling procyclic form. Unexpectedly, TbFUT1 was localized in the mitochondrion of T. brucei and found to be required for mitochondr

SUBMITTER: Bandini G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8439653 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature