Transporters of Trypanosoma brucei-phylogeny, physiology, pharmacology

FEBS J. 2018 Mar;285(6):1012-1023. doi: 10.1111/febs.14302. Epub 2017 Nov 13.

Abstract

Trypanosoma brucei comprise the causative agents of sleeping sickness, T. b. gambiense and T. b. rhodesiense, as well as the livestock-pathogenic T. b. brucei. The parasites are transmitted by the tsetse fly and occur exclusively in sub-Saharan Africa. T. brucei are not only lethal pathogens but have also become model organisms for molecular parasitology. We focus here on membrane transport proteins of T. brucei, their contribution to homeostasis and metabolism in the context of a parasitic lifestyle, and their pharmacological role as potential drug targets or routes of drug entry. Transporters and channels in the plasma membrane are attractive drug targets as they are accessible from the outside. Alternatively, they can be exploited to selectively deliver harmful substances into the trypanosome's interior. Both approaches require the targeted transporter to be essential: in the first case to kill the trypanosome, in the second case to prevent drug resistance due to loss of the transporter. By combining functional and phylogenetic analyses, we were mining the T. brucei predicted proteome for transporters of pharmacological significance. Here, we review recent progress in the identification of transporters of lipid precursors, amino acid permeases and ion channels in T. brucei.

Keywords: amino acid transport; human African trypanosomiasis; ion channel; lipid synthesis.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antiprotozoal Agents / pharmacology
  • Humans
  • Insect Vectors / parasitology
  • Membrane Transport Proteins / metabolism*
  • Phylogeny
  • Protozoan Proteins / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Protozoan Proteins / metabolism*
  • Trypanosoma brucei brucei / classification
  • Trypanosoma brucei brucei / genetics
  • Trypanosoma brucei brucei / metabolism*
  • Trypanosomiasis, African / drug therapy
  • Trypanosomiasis, African / parasitology*
  • Tsetse Flies / parasitology

Substances

  • Antiprotozoal Agents
  • Membrane Transport Proteins
  • Protozoan Proteins