Click here to close Hello! We notice that you are using Internet Explorer, which is not supported by Xenbase and may cause the site to display incorrectly. We suggest using a current version of Chrome, FireFox, or Safari.
XB-ART-58473
Sci Rep 2021 Mar 24;111:6787. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-86204-3.
Show Gene links Show Anatomy links

Identifying the major lactate transporter of Toxoplasma gondii tachyzoites.

Zeng JM , Hapuarachchi SV , Shafik SH , Martin RE , Kirk K , van Dooren GG , Lehane AM .


???displayArticle.abstract???
Toxoplasma gondii and Plasmodium falciparum parasites both extrude L-lactate, a byproduct of glycolysis. The P. falciparum Formate Nitrite Transporter, PfFNT, mediates L-lactate transport across the plasma membrane of P. falciparum parasites and has been validated as a drug target. The T. gondii genome encodes three FNTs that have been shown to transport L-lactate, and which are proposed to be the targets of several inhibitors of T. gondii proliferation. Here, we show that each of the TgFNTs localize to the T. gondii plasma membrane and are capable of transporting L-lactate across it, with TgFNT1 making the primary contribution to L-lactate transport during the disease-causing lytic cycle of the parasite. We use the Xenopus oocyte expression system to provide direct measurements of L-lactate transport via TgFNT1. We undertake a genetic analysis of the importance of the tgfnt genes for parasite proliferation, and demonstrate that all three tgfnt genes can be disrupted individually and together without affecting the lytic cycle under in vitro culture conditions. Together, our experiments identify the major lactate transporter in the disease causing stage of T. gondii, and reveal that this transporter is not required for parasite proliferation, indicating that TgFNTs are unlikely to be targets for anti-Toxoplasma drugs.

???displayArticle.pubmedLink??? 33762657
???displayArticle.link??? Sci Rep



References [+] :
Abdelbaset, Lactate dehydrogenase in Toxoplasma gondii controls virulence, bradyzoite differentiation, and chronic infection. 2017, Pubmed