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Lappalainen R, Kumar M, Duraisingh MT. Hungry for control: metabolite signaling to chromatin in Plasmodium falciparum. Curr Opin Microbiol 2024; 78:102430. [PMID: 38306915 PMCID: PMC11157454 DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2024.102430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024]
Abstract
The human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum undergoes a complex life cycle in two hosts, mammalian and mosquito, where it is constantly subjected to environmental changes in nutrients. Epigenetic mechanisms govern transcriptional switches and are essential for parasite persistence and proliferation. Parasites infecting red blood cells are auxotrophic for several nutrients, and mounting evidence suggests that various metabolites act as direct substrates for epigenetic modifications, with their abundance directly relating to changes in parasite gene expression. Here, we review the latest understanding of metabolic changes that alter the histone code resulting in changes to transcriptional programmes in malaria parasites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Lappalainen
- Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston 02115, USA
| | - Manish Kumar
- Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston 02115, USA
| | - Manoj T Duraisingh
- Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston 02115, USA.
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Dienemann JN, Chen SY, Hitzenberger M, Sievert ML, Hacker SM, Prigge ST, Zacharias M, Groll M, Sieber SA. A Chemical Proteomic Strategy Reveals Inhibitors of Lipoate Salvage in Bacteria and Parasites. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2023; 62:e202304533. [PMID: 37249408 PMCID: PMC10896624 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202304533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2023] [Revised: 05/25/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
The development of novel anti-infectives requires unprecedented strategies targeting pathways which are solely present in pathogens but absent in humans. Following this principle, we developed inhibitors of lipoic acid (LA) salvage, a crucial pathway for the survival of LA auxotrophic bacteria and parasites but non-essential in human cells. An LA-based probe was selectively transferred onto substrate proteins via lipoate protein ligase (LPL) in intact cells, and their binding sites were determined by mass spectrometry. Probe labeling served as a proxy of LPL activity, enabling in situ screenings for cell-permeable LPL inhibitors. Profiling a focused compound library revealed two substrate analogs (LAMe and C3) as inhibitors, which were further validated by binding studies and co-crystallography. Importantly, LAMe exhibited low toxicity in human cells and achieved killing of Plasmodium falciparum in erythrocytes with an EC50 value of 15 μM, making it the most effective LPL inhibitor reported to date.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan-Niklas Dienemann
- Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences, Department of Bioscience, Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Ernst-Otto-Fischer Strasse 8, 85748, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - Shu-Yu Chen
- Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences, Department of Bioscience, Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Ernst-Otto-Fischer Strasse 8, 85748, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - Manuel Hitzenberger
- Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences, Department of Bioscience, Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Ernst-Otto-Fischer Strasse 8, 85748, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - Montana L Sievert
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615N. Wolfe Street, E5132, MD 21205, Baltimore, USA
| | - Stephan M Hacker
- Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 55, 2333CC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Sean T Prigge
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615N. Wolfe Street, E5132, MD 21205, Baltimore, USA
| | - Martin Zacharias
- Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences, Department of Bioscience, Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Ernst-Otto-Fischer Strasse 8, 85748, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - Michael Groll
- Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences, Department of Bioscience, Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Ernst-Otto-Fischer Strasse 8, 85748, Garching bei München, Germany
| | - Stephan A Sieber
- Technical University of Munich, TUM School of Natural Sciences, Department of Bioscience, Center for Functional Protein Assemblies (CPA), Ernst-Otto-Fischer Strasse 8, 85748, Garching bei München, Germany
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