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Abugri J, Ayariga J, Sunwiale SS, Wezena CA, Gyamfi JA, Adu-Frimpong M, Agongo G, Dongdem JT, Abugri D, Dinko B. Targeting the Plasmodium falciparum proteome and organelles for potential antimalarial drug candidates. Heliyon 2022; 8:e10390. [PMID: 36033316 PMCID: PMC9398786 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e10390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2021] [Revised: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
There is an unmet need to unearth alternative treatment options for malaria, wherein this quest is more pressing in recent times due to high morbidity and mortality data arising mostly from the endemic countries coupled with partial diversion of attention from the disease in view of the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic. Available therapeutic options for malaria have been severely threatened with the emergence of resistance to almost all the antimalarial drugs by the Plasmodium falciparum parasite in humans, which is a worrying situation. Artemisinin combination therapies (ACT) that have so far been the mainstay of malaria have encountered resistance by malaria parasite in South East Asia, which is regarded as a notorious ground zero for the emergence of resistance to antimalarial drugs. This review analyzes a few key druggable targets for the parasite and the potential of specific inhibitors to mitigate the emerging antimalarial drug resistance problem by providing a concise assessment of the essential proteins of the malaria parasite that could serve as targets. Moreover, this work provides a summary of the advances made in malaria parasite biology and the potential to leverage these findings for antimalarial drug production.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Abugri
- Department of Biochemistry and Forensic Sciences, School of Chemical and Biochemical Sciences, C. K. Tedam University of Technology and Applied Sciences (CKT-UTAS), Navrongo, Ghana
| | - Joseph Ayariga
- The Biomedical Engineering Programme, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL, 36104, USA
| | - Samuel Sunyazi Sunwiale
- Department of Biochemistry and Forensic Sciences, School of Chemical and Biochemical Sciences, C. K. Tedam University of Technology and Applied Sciences (CKT-UTAS), Navrongo, Ghana
| | - Cletus Adiyaga Wezena
- Department of Microbiology, School of Biosciences, University for Development Studies (UDS), Nyankpala Campus, Tamale, Ghana
| | - Julien Agyemang Gyamfi
- Department of Biochemistry and Forensic Sciences, School of Chemical and Biochemical Sciences, C. K. Tedam University of Technology and Applied Sciences (CKT-UTAS), Navrongo, Ghana
| | - Michael Adu-Frimpong
- Department of Biochemistry and Forensic Sciences, School of Chemical and Biochemical Sciences, C. K. Tedam University of Technology and Applied Sciences (CKT-UTAS), Navrongo, Ghana
| | - Godfred Agongo
- Department of Biochemistry and Forensic Sciences, School of Chemical and Biochemical Sciences, C. K. Tedam University of Technology and Applied Sciences (CKT-UTAS), Navrongo, Ghana
| | - Julius Tieroyaare Dongdem
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine. School of Medicine. University for Development Studies (UDS), Tamale-Campus, Ghana
| | - Daniel Abugri
- Department of Biological Sciences, Microbiology PhD Programme, Laboratory of Ethnomedicine, Parasitology, and Drug Discovery, College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, Alabama State University, Montgomery, USA
| | - Bismarck Dinko
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Basic and Biomedical Sciences, University of Health and Allied Sciences, Ho. Ghana
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Tan MSY, Koussis K, Withers‐Martinez C, Howell SA, Thomas JA, Hackett F, Knuepfer E, Shen M, Hall MD, Snijders AP, Blackman MJ. Autocatalytic activation of a malarial egress protease is druggable and requires a protein cofactor. EMBO J 2021; 40:e107226. [PMID: 33932049 PMCID: PMC8167364 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2020107226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2020] [Revised: 03/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Malaria parasite egress from host erythrocytes (RBCs) is regulated by discharge of a parasite serine protease called SUB1 into the parasitophorous vacuole (PV). There, SUB1 activates a PV-resident cysteine protease called SERA6, enabling host RBC rupture through SERA6-mediated degradation of the RBC cytoskeleton protein β-spectrin. Here, we show that the activation of Plasmodium falciparum SERA6 involves a second, autocatalytic step that is triggered by SUB1 cleavage. Unexpectedly, autoproteolytic maturation of SERA6 requires interaction in multimolecular complexes with a distinct PV-located protein cofactor, MSA180, that is itself a SUB1 substrate. Genetic ablation of MSA180 mimics SERA6 disruption, producing a fatal block in β-spectrin cleavage and RBC rupture. Drug-like inhibitors of SERA6 autoprocessing similarly prevent β-spectrin cleavage and egress in both P. falciparum and the emerging zoonotic pathogen P. knowlesi. Our results elucidate the egress pathway and identify SERA6 as a target for a new class of antimalarial drugs designed to prevent disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michele S Y Tan
- Malaria Biochemistry LaboratoryThe Francis Crick InstituteLondonUK
| | | | | | - Steven A Howell
- Protein Analysis and Proteomics PlatformThe Francis Crick InstituteLondonUK
| | - James A Thomas
- Faculty of Infectious and Tropical DiseasesLondon School of Hygiene & Tropical MedicineLondonUK
| | - Fiona Hackett
- Malaria Biochemistry LaboratoryThe Francis Crick InstituteLondonUK
| | - Ellen Knuepfer
- Department of Pathobiology and Population SciencesRoyal Veterinary CollegeHertfordshireUK
| | - Min Shen
- National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS)National Institutes of HealthRockvilleMDUSA
| | - Matthew D Hall
- National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS)National Institutes of HealthRockvilleMDUSA
| | | | - Michael J Blackman
- Malaria Biochemistry LaboratoryThe Francis Crick InstituteLondonUK
- Faculty of Infectious and Tropical DiseasesLondon School of Hygiene & Tropical MedicineLondonUK
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Smith NA, Clarke OB, Lee M, Hodder AN, Smith BJ. Structure of the Plasmodium falciparum PfSERA5 pseudo-zymogen. Protein Sci 2020; 29:2245-2258. [PMID: 32955133 PMCID: PMC7586913 DOI: 10.1002/pro.3956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2020] [Revised: 09/17/2020] [Accepted: 09/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
PfSERA5, a significantly abundant protein present within the parasitophorous vacuole (PV) and essential for normal growth during the blood-stage life cycle of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, displays structural similarity to many other cysteine proteases. However, PfSERA5 does not exhibit any detectable protease activity and therefore the role of the PfSERA5 papain-like domain (PfSERA5E), thought to remain bound to its cognate prodomain, remains unknown. In this study, we present a revised structure of the central PfSERA5E domain at a resolution of 1.2 Å, and the first structure of the "zymogen" of this papain-like domain including its cognate prodomain (PfSERA5PE) to 2.2 Å resolution. PfSERA5PE is somewhat structurally similar to that of other known proenzymes, retaining the conserved overall folding and orientation of the prodomain through, and occluding, the archetypal papain-like catalytic triad "active-site" cleft, in the same reverse direction as conventional prodomains. Our findings are congruent with previously identified structures of PfSERA5E and of similar "zymogens" and provide a foundation for further investigation into the function of PfSERA5.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas A. Smith
- Department of Chemistry and Physics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular ScienceLa Trobe UniversityMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Oliver B. Clarke
- Department of AnesthesiologyColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Department of Physiology and Molecular BiophysicsColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Mihwa Lee
- Department of Biochemistry and Genetics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular ScienceLa Trobe UniversityMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Anthony N. Hodder
- The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical ResearchMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Brian J. Smith
- Department of Chemistry and Physics, La Trobe Institute for Molecular ScienceLa Trobe UniversityMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
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