Caister Academic Press

The Role of Hemeproteins in Different Life Cycle Stages of Leishmania

Subhankar Dolai and Subrata Adak
from: Molecular Biology of Kinetoplastid Parasites (Edited by: Hemanta K. Majumder). Caister Academic Press, U.K. (2018) Pages: 119-136.

Abstract

Hemeproteins are iron protoporphyrin IX prosthetic group/co-factor containing proteins that are widely distributed among prokaryotes and eukaryotes to carry out vital cellular functions, which are necessary for survival. To perpetuate infection and survive for successful disease establishment, Leishmania pathogens adopt different morphology through differentiation, manipulate cellular metabolism, programme cell signalling to thrive within hypoxic arthropod vector gut, employ antioxidant defence systems to evade reactive oxygen species that are generated as a result of cellular metabolism, and reactive nitrogen and oxygen species that are generated within activated vertebrate host macrophages. Genome sequencing reveals the presence of an array of hemeproteins in Leishmania with hypothetical functions. However, being phylogenetically distant, the Leishmania hemeproteins are distinct in primary structures and sometimes novel compared to their human host counterparts. In this chapter we have surmised the recent development in understanding of hemeprotein functions in Leishmania and their physiological roles in parasite life cycle to better understand the pathogenesis, and the novel parasite survival strategies that could be exploited as possible therapeutic targets read more ...
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