Searching across hundreds of databases
Gametocytes of the malaria parasite Plasmodium are taken up by the mosquito vector with an infectious blood meal, representing a critical stage for parasite transmission. Calcium-independent protein kinases (CDPKs) play key roles in calcium-mediated signaling across the complex life cycle of the parasite. We sought to understand their role in human parasite transmission from the host to the mosquito vector and thus investigated the role of the human-infective parasite Plasmodium falciparum CDPK4 in the parasite life cycle. P. falciparum cdpk4- parasites created by targeted gene deletion showed no effect in blood stage development or gametocyte development. However, cdpk4- parasites showed a severe defect in male gametogenesis and the emergence of flagellated male gametes. To understand the molecular underpinnings of this defect, we performed mass spectrometry-based phosphoproteomic analyses of wild-type and Plasmodium falciparum cdpk4- late gametocyte stages to identify key CDPK4-mediated phosphorylation events that may be important for the regulation of male gametogenesis. We further employed in vitro assays to identify these putative substrates of Plasmodium falciparum CDPK4. This indicated that CDPK4 regulates male gametogenesis by directly or indirectly controlling key essential events, such as DNA replication, mRNA translation, and cell motility. Taken together, our work demonstrates that PfCDPK4 is a central kinase that regulates exflagellation and thereby is critical for parasite transmission to the mosquito vector. IMPORTANCE Transmission of the malaria parasite to the mosquito vector is critical for the completion of the sexual stage of the parasite life cycle and is dependent on the release of male gametes from the gametocyte body inside the mosquito midgut. In the present study, we demonstrate that PfCDPK4 is critical for male gametogenesis and is involved in phosphorylation of proteins essential for male gamete emergence. Targeting PfCDPK4 and its substrates may provide insights into achieving effective malaria transmission-blocking strategies.
Pubmed ID: 34724830 RIS Download
Publication data is provided by the National Library of Medicine ® and PubMed ®. Data is retrieved from PubMed ® on a weekly schedule. For terms and conditions see the National Library of Medicine Terms and Conditions.
The Global Proteome Machine Organization was set up so that scientists involved in proteomics using tandem mass spectrometry could use that data to analyze proteomes. The projects supported by the GPMO have been selected to improve the quality of analysis, make the results portable and to provide a common platform for testing and validating proteomics results. The Global Proteome Machine Database was constructed to utilize the information obtained by GPM servers to aid in the difficult process of validating peptide MS/MS spectra as well as protein coverage patterns. This database has been integrated into GPM server pages, allowing users to quickly compare their experimental results with the best results that have been previously observed by other scientists.
View all literature mentionsCommercial instrument and chemical vendor. Developer and manufacturer of specialized technological products for life science research and clinical diagnostics markets.
View all literature mentionsTHIS RESOURCE IS NO LONGER IN SERVICE, documented on February 1st, 2022. Software application for genetic analysis of classical biometric traits like blood pressure or height that are caused by a combination of polygenic inheritance and complex environmental forces. (entry from Genetic Analysis Software)
View all literature mentionsA web-server for fast comparative functional profiling of metagenomes.
View all literature mentionsSoftware that enables rapid tool creation by providing a robust, pluggable development framework that simplifies and unifies data file access, and performs standard proteomics and LCMS dataset computations.
View all literature mentionsFunctional genomic database for malaria parasites. Database for Plasmodium spp. Provides resource for data analysis and visualization in gene-by-gene or genome-wide scale. PlasmoDB 5.5 contains annotated genomes, evidence of transcription, proteomics evidence, protein function evidence, population biology and evolution data. Data can be queried by selecting from query grid or drop down menus. Results can be combined with each other on query history page. Search results can be downloaded with associated functional data and registered users can store their query history for future retrieval or analysis.Key community database for malaria researchers, intersecting many types of laboratory and computational data, aggregated by gene.
View all literature mentionsMass spectrometry Interactive Virtual Environment (MassIVE) is a community resource developed by the NIH-funded Center for Computational Mass Spectrometry to promote the global, free exchange of mass spectrometry data. Data repository for proteomics data.
View all literature mentionsThe SciCrunch Infrastructure was developed as a cooperative data platform to be used by diverse communities in making data more FAIR.
scicrunch.org
