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Full-Text Articles in Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology
Role Of Phosphoinositide-Based Signaling In Virulence In Entamoeba Histolytica, Amrita Koushik
Role Of Phosphoinositide-Based Signaling In Virulence In Entamoeba Histolytica, Amrita Koushik
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Entamoeba histolytica is an intestinal protozoan parasite and is the causative agent of amoebiasis. Upon entering the human host, cellular processes such as adhesion, phagocytosis, motility and secretion play a vital role in its propagation and pathogenicity. In other systems, each of these cellular processes is preceded by activation of signal transduction pathways, which often involve membrane phosphoinositides such as phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2). Little is known about phosphoinositide signaling in E. histolytica pathogenicity. In this study, we demonstrated that PI(4,5)P2 is localized to cholesterol-rich microdomains, lipid rafts, of the E. histolytica membrane and to the trailing edge …
Regulation Of The Lipid Raft Localization Of The Gal/Galnac Lectin, An Adhesin On The Surface Of The Human Protozoan Parasite, Entamoeba Histolytica, Amanda Goldston
Regulation Of The Lipid Raft Localization Of The Gal/Galnac Lectin, An Adhesin On The Surface Of The Human Protozoan Parasite, Entamoeba Histolytica, Amanda Goldston
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Lipid rafts, sterol- and sphingolipid-rich membrane microdomains, have been shown to control virulence in a variety of parasites including Entamoeba histolytica, an intestinal parasite that causes dysentery and liver abscess. Parasite cell surface receptors, such as the Gal/GalNAc lectin, facilitate attachment to host cells and extracellular matrix. The Gal/GalNAc lectin binds to galactose or N-acetylgalactosamine residues on host components, and is composed of heavy (Hgl), intermediate (Igl), and light (Lgl) subunits. Although Igl is constitutively localized to lipid rafts, Hgl and Lgl transiently associate with this compartment in a cholesterol-dependent fashion. Exposure to bonafide Gal/GalNAc lectin ligands is associated with …