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Cryo-EM structure of 1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate synthase DXPS from Plasmodium falciparum reveals a distinct N-terminal domain.
- Source :
-
Nature communications [Nat Commun] 2024 Aug 05; Vol. 15 (1), pp. 6642. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Aug 05. - Publication Year :
- 2024
-
Abstract
- Plasmodium falciparum is the main causative agent of malaria, a deadly disease that mainly affects children under five years old. Artemisinin-based combination therapies have been pivotal in controlling the disease, but resistance has arisen in various regions, increasing the risk of treatment failure. The non-mevalonate pathway is essential for the isoprenoid synthesis in Plasmodium and provides several under-explored targets to be used in the discovery of new antimalarials. 1-deoxy-D-xylulose-5-phosphate synthase (DXPS) is the first and rate-limiting enzyme of the pathway. Despite its importance, there are no structures available for any Plasmodium spp., due to the complex sequence which contains large regions of high disorder, making crystallisation a difficult task. In this manuscript, we use cryo-electron microscopy to solve the P. falciparum DXPS structure at a final resolution of 2.42 Å. Overall, the structure resembles other DXPS enzymes but includes a distinct N-terminal domain exclusive to the Plasmodium genus. Mutational studies show that destabilization of the cap domain interface negatively impacts protein stability and activity. Additionally, a density for the co-factor thiamine diphosphate is found in the active site. Our work highlights the potential of cryo-EM to obtain structures of P. falciparum proteins that are unfeasible by means of crystallography.<br /> (© 2024. The Author(s).)
- Subjects :
- Pentosyltransferases metabolism
Pentosyltransferases chemistry
Pentosyltransferases genetics
Pentosyltransferases ultrastructure
Protein Domains
Models, Molecular
Protozoan Proteins metabolism
Protozoan Proteins chemistry
Protozoan Proteins genetics
Protozoan Proteins ultrastructure
Transferases
Plasmodium falciparum enzymology
Plasmodium falciparum genetics
Cryoelectron Microscopy
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 2041-1723
- Volume :
- 15
- Issue :
- 1
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Nature communications
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 39103329
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-50671-9