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Izquierdo L. The glycobiology of plasmodium falciparum: New approaches and recent advances. Biotechnol Adv 2023; 66:108178. [PMID: 37216996 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2023.108178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2022] [Revised: 04/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Like any other microorganism, pathogenic protozoan parasites rely heavily on glycoconjugates and glycan binding proteins to protect themselves from the environment and to interact with their diverse hosts. A thorough comprehension of how glycobiology contributes to the survival and virulence of these organisms may reveal unknown aspects of their biology and may open much needed avenues for the design of new strategies against them. In the case of Plasmodium falciparum, which causes the vast majority of malaria cases and deaths, the restricted variety and the simplicity of its glycans seemed to confer limited significance to the role played by glycoconjugates in the parasite. Nonetheless, the last 10 to 15 years of research are revealing a clearer and more defined picture. Thus, the use of new experimental techniques and the results obtained provide new avenues for understanding the biology of the parasite, as well as opportunities for the development of much required new tools against malaria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis Izquierdo
- ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic - Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain; CIBER de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Madrid, Spain.
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2
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Fenollar À, Ros-Lucas A, Pía Alberione M, Martínez-Peinado N, Ramírez M, Ángel Rosales-Motos M, Y. Lee L, Alonso-Padilla J, Izquierdo L. Compounds targeting GPI biosynthesis or N-glycosylation are active against Plasmodium falciparum. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2022; 20:850-863. [PMID: 35222844 PMCID: PMC8841962 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2022.01.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Revised: 01/25/2022] [Accepted: 01/29/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Compounds targeting key steps in GPI biosynthesis abrogate P. falciparum growth. N-glycosylation disruption halts parasite development and induces delayed death. Tunicamycin-induced delayed death is not linked with the synthesis of isoprenoids. In summary, two metabolic pathways are outlined for further drug target exploration.
The emergence of resistance to first-line antimalarials, including artemisinin, the last effective malaria therapy in some regions, stresses the urgent need to develop new effective treatments against this disease. The identification and validation of metabolic pathways that could be targeted for drug development may strongly contribute to accelerate this process. In this study, we use fully characterized specific inhibitors targeting glycan biosynthetic pathways as research tools to analyze their effects on the growth of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum and to validate these metabolic routes as feasible chemotherapeutic targets. Through docking simulations using models predicted by AlphaFold, we also shed new light into the modes of action of some of these inhibitors. Molecules inhibiting N-acetylglucosaminyl-phosphatidylinositol de-N-acetylase (GlcNAc-PI de-N-acetylase, PIGL/GPI12) or the inositol acyltransferase (GWT1), central for glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) biosynthesis, halt the growth of intraerythrocytic asexual parasites during the trophozoite stages of the intraerythrocytic developmental cycle (IDC). Remarkably, the nucleoside antibiotic tunicamycin, which targets UDP-N-acetylglucosamine:dolichyl-phosphate N-acetylglucosaminephosphotransferase (ALG7) and N-glycosylation in other organisms, induces a delayed-death effect and inhibits parasite growth during the second IDC after treatment. Our data indicate that tunicamycin induces a specific inhibitory effect, hinting to a more substantial role of the N-glycosylation pathway in P. falciparum intraerythrocytic asexual stages than previously thought. To sum up, our results place GPI biosynthesis and N-glycosylation pathways as metabolic routes with potential to yield much-needed therapeutic targets against the parasite.
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Affiliation(s)
- Àngel Fenollar
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Albert Ros-Lucas
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - María Pía Alberione
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Nieves Martínez-Peinado
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Miriam Ramírez
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Miguel Ángel Rosales-Motos
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ling Y. Lee
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Julio Alonso-Padilla
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
- CIBER de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Luis Izquierdo
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
- CIBER de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Madrid, Spain
- Corresponding author at: Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Hospital Clínic—University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain.
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Ben Ami Pilo H, Khan Khilji S, Lühle J, Biskup K, Levy Gal B, Rosenhek Goldian I, Alfandari D, Revach O, Kiper E, Morandi MI, Rotkopf R, Porat Z, Blanchard V, Seeberger PH, Regev‐Rudzki N, Moscovitz O. Sialylated N-glycans mediate monocyte uptake of extracellular vesicles secreted from Plasmodium falciparum-infected red blood cells. JOURNAL OF EXTRACELLULAR BIOLOGY 2022; 1:e33. [PMID: 38938665 PMCID: PMC11080922 DOI: 10.1002/jex2.33] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2021] [Revised: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 01/26/2022] [Indexed: 06/29/2024]
Abstract
Glycoconjugates on extracellular vesicles (EVs) play a vital role in internalization and mediate interaction as well as regulation of the host immune system by viruses, bacteria, and parasites. During their intraerythrocytic life-cycle stages, malaria parasites, Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) mediate the secretion of EVs by infected red blood cells (RBCs) that carry a diverse range of parasitic and host-derived molecules. These molecules facilitate parasite-parasite and parasite-host interactions to ensure parasite survival. To date, the number of identified Pf genes associated with glycan synthesis and the repertoire of expressed glycoconjugates is relatively low. Moreover, the role of Pf glycans in pathogenesis is mostly unclear and poorly understood. As a result, the expression of glycoconjugates on Pf-derived EVs or their involvement in the parasite life-cycle has yet to be reported. Herein, we show that EVs secreted by Pf-infected RBCs carry significantly higher sialylated complex N-glycans than EVs derived from healthy RBCs. Furthermore, we reveal that EV uptake by host monocytes depends on N-glycoproteins and demonstrate that terminal sialic acid on the N-glycans is essential for uptake by human monocytes. Our results provide the first evidence that Pf exploits host sialylated N-glycans to mediate EV uptake by the human immune system cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hila Ben Ami Pilo
- Faculty of BiochemistryDepartment of Biomolecular SciencesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | - Sana Khan Khilji
- Department of Biomolecular SystemsMax‐Planck‐Institute of Colloids and InterfacesBerlinGermany
- Institute of Chemistry and BiochemistryFreie Universität BerlinBerlinGermany
| | - Jost Lühle
- Department of Biomolecular SystemsMax‐Planck‐Institute of Colloids and InterfacesBerlinGermany
- Institute of Chemistry and BiochemistryFreie Universität BerlinBerlinGermany
| | - Karina Biskup
- Institute of Laboratory MedicineClinical Chemistry and PathobiochemistryCharite University Medicine BerlinBerlinGermany
| | - Bar Levy Gal
- Flow Cytometry Unit, Life Sciences Core FacilitiesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | | | - Daniel Alfandari
- Faculty of BiochemistryDepartment of Biomolecular SciencesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | - Or‐Yam Revach
- Faculty of BiochemistryDepartment of Biomolecular SciencesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | - Edo Kiper
- Faculty of BiochemistryDepartment of Biomolecular SciencesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | - Mattia I. Morandi
- Faculty of BiochemistryDepartment of Biomolecular SciencesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | - Ron Rotkopf
- Bioinformatics Unit, Life Sciences Core FacilitiesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | - Ziv Porat
- Flow Cytometry Unit, Life Sciences Core FacilitiesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | - Véronique Blanchard
- Institute of Laboratory MedicineClinical Chemistry and PathobiochemistryCharite University Medicine BerlinBerlinGermany
| | - Peter H. Seeberger
- Department of Biomolecular SystemsMax‐Planck‐Institute of Colloids and InterfacesBerlinGermany
- Institute of Chemistry and BiochemistryFreie Universität BerlinBerlinGermany
| | - Neta Regev‐Rudzki
- Faculty of BiochemistryDepartment of Biomolecular SciencesWeizmann Institute of ScienceRehovotIsrael
| | - Oren Moscovitz
- Department of Biomolecular SystemsMax‐Planck‐Institute of Colloids and InterfacesBerlinGermany
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Goerdeler F, Seeberger PH, Moscovitz O. Unveiling the Sugary Secrets of Plasmodium Parasites. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:712538. [PMID: 34335547 PMCID: PMC8322443 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.712538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Plasmodium parasites cause malaria disease, one of the leading global health burdens for humanity, infecting hundreds of millions of people each year. Different glycans on the parasite and the host cell surface play significant roles in both malaria pathogenesis and host defense mechanisms. So far, only small, truncated N- and O-glycans have been identified in Plasmodium species. In contrast, complex glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) glycolipids are highly abundant on the parasite’s cell membrane and are essential for its survival. Moreover, the parasites express lectins that bind and exploit the host cell surface glycans for different aspects of the parasite life cycle, such as adherence, invasion, and evasion of the host immune system. In parallel, the host cell glycocalyx and lectin expression serve as the first line of defense against Plasmodium parasites and directly dictate susceptibility to Plasmodium infection. This review provides an overview of the glycobiology involved in Plasmodium-host interactions and its contribution to malaria pathogenesis. Recent findings are presented and evaluated in the context of potential therapeutic exploitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Goerdeler
- Department of Biomolecular Systems, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Potsdam, Germany.,Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Peter H Seeberger
- Department of Biomolecular Systems, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Potsdam, Germany.,Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Oren Moscovitz
- Department of Biomolecular Systems, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Potsdam, Germany
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Rashidi S, Tuteja R, Mansouri R, Ali-Hassanzadeh M, Shafiei R, Ghani E, Karimazar M, Nguewa P, Manzano-Román R. The main post-translational modifications and related regulatory pathways in the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum: An update. J Proteomics 2021; 245:104279. [PMID: 34089893 DOI: 10.1016/j.jprot.2021.104279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2021] [Revised: 05/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
There are important challenges when investigating individual post-translational modifications (PTMs) or protein interaction network and delineating if PTMs or their changes and cross-talks are involved during infection, disease initiation or as a result of disease progression. Proteomics and in silico approaches now offer the possibility to complement each other to further understand the regulatory involvement of these modifications in parasites and infection biology. Accordingly, the current review highlights key expressed or altered proteins and PTMs are invisible switches that turn on and off the function of most of the proteins. PTMs include phosphorylation, glycosylation, ubiquitylation, palmitoylation, myristoylation, prenylation, acetylation, methylation, and epigenetic PTMs in P. falciparum which have been recently identified. But also other low-abundant or overlooked PTMs that might be important for the parasite's survival, infectivity, antigenicity, immunomodulation and pathogenesis. We here emphasize the PTMs as regulatory pathways playing major roles in the biology, pathogenicity, metabolic pathways, survival, host-parasite interactions and the life cycle of P. falciparum. Further validations and functional characterizations of such proteins might confirm the discovery of therapeutic targets and might most likely provide valuable data for the treatment of P. falciparum, the main cause of severe malaria in human.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sajad Rashidi
- Department of Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
| | - Renu Tuteja
- Parasite Biology Group, ICGEB, P. O. Box 10504, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi, 110067, India
| | - Reza Mansouri
- Department of Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences and Health Services, Yazd, Iran
| | - Mohammad Ali-Hassanzadeh
- Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Jiroft University of Medical Sciences, Jiroft, Iran
| | - Reza Shafiei
- Vector-borne Diseases Research Center, North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences, Bojnurd, Iran
| | - Esmaeel Ghani
- Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Center, Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences, Bandar Abbas, Iran
| | - Mohammadreza Karimazar
- Department of Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
| | - Paul Nguewa
- University of Navarra, ISTUN Instituto de Salud Tropical, Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, IdiSNA (Navarra Institute for Health Research), c/Irunlarrea 1, 31008 Pamplona, Spain.
| | - Raúl Manzano-Román
- Proteomics Unit, Cancer Research Centre (IBMCC/CSIC/USAL/IBSAL), 37007, Salamanca, Spain.
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