Deciphering the Molecular Mechanism and Function of Pore-Forming Toxins using Leishmania major.

ABSTRACT: Understanding the function and mechanism of pore-forming toxins (PFTs) is challenging because cells resist the membrane damage caused by PFTs. While biophysical approaches help understand pore formation, they often rely on reductionist approaches lacking the full complement of membrane lipids and proteins. Cultured human cells provide an alternative system, but their complexity and redundancies in repair mechanisms make identifying specific mechanisms difficult. In contrast, the human protozoan pathogen responsible for cutaneous leishmaniasis, Leishmania major, offers an optimal balance between complexity and physiologic relevance. L. major is genetically tractable and can be cultured to high density in vitro, and any impact of perturbations on infection can be measured in established muri

SUBMITTER: Haram CS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9792151 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature