Myosin diversity in Apicomplexa

A De novo Peptide from a High Throughput Peptide Library Blocks Myosin A -MTIP Complex Formation in Plasmodium falciparum

Apicomplexan parasites, through their motor machinery, produce the required propulsive force critical for host cell-entry. The conserved components of this so-called glideosome machinery are myosin A and myosin A Tail Interacting Protein (MTIP). MTIP tethers myosin A to the inner membrane complex of the parasite through 20 amino acid-long C-terminal end of myosin A that makes direct contacts with MTIP, allowing the invasion of Plasmodium falciparum in erythrocytes. Here, we discovered through screening a peptide library, a de-novo peptide ZA1 that binds the myosin A tail domain. We demonstrated that ZA1 bound strongly to myosin A tail and was able to disrupt the native myosin A tail MTIP complex both in vitro and in vivo. We then showed that a shortened peptide derived from ZA1, named ZA1S, was able to bind myosin A and block parasite invasion. Overall, our study identified a novel anti-malarial peptide that could be used in combination with other antimalarials for blocking the invasion of Plasmodium falciparum.

Dissecting the molecular assembly of the Toxoplasma gondii MyoA motility complex

Apicomplexan parasites such as Toxoplasma gondii rely on a unique form of locomotion known as gliding motility. Generating the mechanical forces to support motility are divergent class XIV myosins (MyoA) coordinated by accessory proteins known as light chains. Although the importance of the MyoA-light chain complex is well-established, the detailed mechanisms governing its assembly and regulation are relatively unknown. To establish a molecular blueprint of this dynamic complex, we first mapped the adjacent binding sites of light chains MLC1 and ELC1 on the MyoA neck (residues 775-818) using a combination of hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry and isothermal titration calorimetry. We then determined the 1.85 Å resolution crystal structure of MLC1 in complex with its cognate MyoA peptide. Structural analysis revealed a bilobed architecture with MLC1 clamping tightly around the helical MyoA peptide, consistent with the stable 10 nm K_d measured by isothermal titration calorimetry. We next showed that coordination of calcium by an EF-hand in ELC1 and prebinding of MLC1 to the MyoA neck enhanced the affinity of ELC1 for the MyoA neck 7- and 8-fold, respectively. When combined, these factors enhanced ELC1 binding 49-fold (to a K_d of 12 nm). Using the full-length MyoA motor (residues 1-831), we then showed that, in addition to coordinating the neck region, ELC1 appears to engage the MyoA converter subdomain, which couples the motor domain to the neck. These data support an assembly model where staged binding events cooperate to yield high-affinity complexes that are able to maximize force transduction.

Phosphorylation of a Myosin Motor by TgCDPK3 Facilitates Rapid Initiation of Motility during Toxoplasma gondii egress

Members of the family of calcium dependent protein kinases (CDPK’s) are abundant in certain pathogenic parasites and absent in mammalian cells making them strong drug target candidates. In the obligate intracellular parasite Toxoplasma gondii TgCDPK3 is important for calcium dependent egress from the host cell. Nonetheless, the specific substrate through which TgCDPK3 exerts its function during egress remains unknown. To close this knowledge gap we applied the proximity-based protein interaction trap BioID and identified 13 proteins that are either near neighbors or direct interactors of TgCDPK3. Among these was Myosin A (TgMyoA), the unconventional motor protein greatly responsible for driving the gliding motility of this parasite, and whose phosphorylation at serine 21 by an unknown kinase was previously shown to be important for motility and egress. Through a non-biased peptide array approach we determined that TgCDPK3 can specifically phosphorylate serines 21 and 743 of TgMyoA in vitro. Complementation of the TgmyoA null mutant, which exhibits a delay in egress, with TgMyoA in which either S21 or S743 is mutated to alanine failed to rescue the egress defect. Similarly, phosphomimetic mutations in the motor protein overcome the need for TgCDPK3. Moreover, extracellular Tgcdpk3 mutant parasites have motility defects that are complemented by expression of S21+S743 phosphomimetic of TgMyoA. Thus, our studies establish that phosphorylation of TgMyoA by TgCDPK3 is responsible for initiation of motility and parasite egress from the host-cell and provides mechanistic insight into how this unique kinase regulates the lytic cycle of Toxoplasma gondii.

Toxoplasma gondii can cause severe disease and death in the immunocompromised and in those infected congenitally. Due to limitations of existing drugs there is a need for studying proteins that are unique and essential to the parasite. We recently established that TgCDPK3, a member of a family of calcium dependent protein kinase present in plants and some parasites but absent in human cells, regulates parasite egress from the host cell. While it has been hypothesized that TgCDPK3 controls rapid exit from the host by phosphorylating proteins needed for activating motility, the particular substrates of this kinase remained unknown. We have now applied an interaction trap system to identify the proteins that are modified by this kinase, which include a parasite motor protein Myosin A (TgMyoA). We show that TgCDPK3 specifically phosphorylates TgMyoA and this phosphorylation is important for parasite egress and motility.

Chloroplast and oxygen evolution changes in Symbiodinium sp. as a response to latrunculin and butanedione monoxime treatments under various light conditions

The actin cytoskeleton is a dynamic structure that provides an interactive platform for organelles and cellular components. It also serves as track for membranes and vesicles that move via myosin. The actin cytoskeleton of Symbiodinium is a well-organized reticular structure suggestive of multiple membrane interactions, very likely including those of the chloroplast. The Symbiodinium chloroplast membrane network is, in turn, a highly organized structure, suggestive of being under the control of an organizing network. We visualized the chloroplast membranes of cultured Symbiodinium sp. under various light conditions and observed changes dependent on illumination intensity. Since we suspected interaction between these two organelles, and we knew that the Symbiodinium actin cytoskeleton collapses upon treatment with either latrunculin B, an actin microfilament-disrupting agent, or butanedione monoxime, a myosin function inhibitor, we tested the Symbiodinium sp. oxygen evolution in their presence. Upon latrunculin B addition, the oxygen production decreased compared to non-treated cells; however, this was not observed after a 24 h latrunculin treatment. On the contrary, butanedione monoxime treatment caused a non-recoverable dysfunction of the chloroplast causing a severe loss in oxygen production even after long-term exposure. Using electron microscopy, we observed an alteration of the Symbiodinium sp. chloroplast distribution after latrunculin B treatment, with respect to untreated cells. Furthermore, a thorough disorganization of the chloroplast grana was observed after butanedione monoxime treatment. These data suggest that an actomyosin system would be important for chloroplast organization and distribution, and critical for normal photosynthetic function of Symbiodinium sp.

The actin cytoskeleton organization and disorganization properties of the photosynthetic dinoflagellate Symbiodinium kawagutii in culture

The actin cytoskeleton organization in symbiotic marine dinoflagellates is largely undescribed; most likely, due to their intense pigment autofluorescence and cell walls that block fluorescent probe access. Using a freeze-fracture and fixation procedure, we observed the actin cytoskeleton of Symbiodinium kawagutii cultured in vitro with fluorescently labeled phalloidin and by indirect immunofluorescence with monoclonal antibodies specific for actin. The cytoskeleton appeared as an organized network with interconnected cortical and cytoplasmic thick filaments, along with some intertwined fine filaments. It showed a grid-type, reticular pattern organized in a lattice-like structure within the cell and throughout the cytoplasm. This organization was similar when the observations were done with either fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-phalloidin or anti-actin, although the latter showed a more evenly distributed fluorescence characteristic of nonpolymerized actin. The network organization collapsed upon treatment with latrunculin, resulting in bright foci and diffuse fluorescence. A similar effect was obtained upon butanedione monoxime treatment, except that no bright foci were observed. We have been able to successfully visualize the actin cytoskeleton of S. kawagutii cells using fluorescence-based procedures. This is the first report on the visualization of the organization of the actin cytoskeleton under various conditions in these walled, highly autofluorescent cells.

Cytoskeleton assembly in Toxoplasma gondii cell division

Cell division across members of the protozoan parasite phylum Apicomplexa displays a surprising diversity between different species as well as between different life stages of the same parasite. In most cases, infection of a host cell by a single parasite results in the formation of a polyploid cell from which individual daughters bud in a process dependent on a final round of mitosis. Unlike other apicomplexans, Toxoplasma gondii divides by a binary process consisting of internal budding that results in only two daughter cells per round of division. Since T. gondii is experimentally accessible and displays the simplest division mode, it has manifested itself as a model for apicomplexan daughter formation. Here, we review newly emerging insights in the prominent role that assembly of the cortical cytoskeletal scaffold plays in the process of daughter parasite formation.

Stage-specific depletion of myosin A supports an essential role in motility of malarial ookinetes

Functional analysis of Plasmodium genes by classical reverse genetics is currently limited to mutants that are viable during erythrocytic schizogony, the pathogenic phase of the malaria parasite where transfection is performed. Here, we describe a conceptually simple experimental approach to study the function of genes essential to the asexual blood stages in a subsequent life cycle stage by a promoter-swap approach. As a proof of concept we targeted the unconventional class XIV myosin MyoA, which is known to be required for Toxoplasma gondii tachyzoite locomotion and host cell invasion. By placing the corresponding Plasmodium berghei gene, PbMyoA, under the control of the apical membrane antigen 1 (AMA1) promoter, expression in blood stages is maintained but switched off during transmission to the insect vector, i.e. ookinetes. In those mutant ookinetes gliding motility is entirely abolished resulting in a complete block of life cycle progression in Anopheles mosquitoes. Similar approaches should permit the analysis of gene function in the mosquito forms that are shared with the erythrocytic stages of the malaria parasite.

Cholangiocyte myosin IIB is required for localized aggregation of sodium glucose cotransporter 1 to sites of Cryptosporidium parvum cellular invasion and facilitates parasite internalization

Internalization of the obligate intracellular apicomplexan parasite, Cryptosporidium parvum, results in the formation of a unique intramembranous yet extracytoplasmic niche on the apical surfaces of host epithelial cells, a process that depends on host cell membrane extension. We previously demonstrated that efficient C. parvum invasion of biliary epithelial cells (cholangiocytes) requires host cell actin polymerization and localized membrane translocation/insertion of Na(+)/glucose cotransporter 1 (SGLT1) and of aquaporin 1 (Aqp1), a water channel, at the attachment site. The resultant localized water influx facilitates parasite cellular invasion by promoting host-cell membrane protrusion. However, the molecular mechanisms by which C. parvum induces membrane translocation/insertion of SGLT1/Aqp1 are obscure. We report here that cultured human cholangiocytes express several nonmuscle myosins, including myosins IIA and IIB. Moreover, C. parvum infection of cultured cholangiocytes results in the localized selective aggregation of myosin IIB but not myosin IIA at the region of parasite attachment, as assessed by dual-label immunofluorescence confocal microscopy. Concordantly, treatment of cells with the myosin light chain kinase inhibitor ML-7 or the myosin II-specific inhibitor blebbistatin or selective RNA-mediated repression of myosin IIB significantly inhibits (P < 0.05) C. parvum cellular invasion (by 60 to 80%). Furthermore ML-7 and blebbistatin significantly decrease (P < 0.02) C. parvum-induced accumulation of SGLT1 at infection sites (by approximately 80%). Thus, localized actomyosin-dependent membrane translocation of transporters/channels initiated by C. parvum is essential for membrane extension and parasite internalization, a phenomenon that may also be relevant to the mechanisms of cell membrane protrusion in general.

Family members stick together: multi-protein complexes of malaria parasites

Malaria parasites express a broad repertoire of proteins whose expression is tightly regulated depending on the life-cycle stage of the parasite and the environment of target organs in the respective host. Transmission of malaria parasites from the human to the anopheline mosquito is mediated by intraerythrocytic sexual stages, termed gametocytes, which circulate in the peripheral blood and are essential for the spread of the tropical disease. In Plasmodium falciparum, gametocytes express numerous extracellular proteins with adhesive motifs, which might mediate important interactions during transmission. Among these is a family of six secreted proteins with adhesive modules, termed PfCCp proteins, which are highly conserved throughout the apicomplexan clade. In P. falciparum, the proteins are expressed in the parasitophorous vacuole of gametocytes and are subsequently exposed on the surface of macrogametes during parasite reproduction in the mosquito midgut. One characteristic of the family is a co-dependent expression, such that loss of all six proteins occurs if expression of one member is disrupted via gene knockout. The six PfCCp proteins interact by adhesion domain-mediated binding and thus form complexes on the sexual stage surface having adhesive properties. To date, the PfCCp proteins represent the only protein family of the malaria parasite sexual stages that assembles to multimeric complexes, and only a small number of such protein complexes have so far been identified in other life-cycle stages of the parasite.

Drawing the tree of eukaryotic life based on the analysis of 2,269 manually annotated myosins from 328 species

The tree of eukaryotic life was reconstructed based on the analysis of 2,269 myosin motor domains from 328 organisms, confirming some accepted relationships of major taxa and resolving disputed and preliminary classifications.

Background

The evolutionary history of organisms is expressed in phylogenetic trees. The most widely used phylogenetic trees describing the evolution of all organisms have been constructed based on single-gene phylogenies that, however, often produce conflicting results. Incongruence between phylogenetic trees can result from the violation of the orthology assumption and stochastic and systematic errors.

Results

Here, we have reconstructed the tree of eukaryotic life based on the analysis of 2,269 myosin motor domains from 328 organisms. All sequences were manually annotated and verified, and were grouped into 35 myosin classes, of which 16 have not been proposed previously. The resultant phylogenetic tree confirms some accepted relationships of major taxa and resolves disputed and preliminary classifications. We place the Viridiplantae after the separation of Euglenozoa, Alveolata, and Stramenopiles, we suggest a monophyletic origin of Entamoebidae, Acanthamoebidae, and Dictyosteliida, and provide evidence for the asynchronous evolution of the Mammalia and Fungi.

Conclusion

Our analysis of the myosins allowed combining phylogenetic information derived from class-specific trees with the information of myosin class evolution and distribution. This approach is expected to result in superior accuracy compared to single-gene or phylogenomic analyses because the orthology problem is resolved and a strong determinant not depending on any technical uncertainties is incorporated, the class distribution. Combining our analysis of the myosins with high quality analyses of other protein families, for example, that of the kinesins, could help in resolving still questionable dependencies at the origin of eukaryotic life.

GpMyoF, a WD40 repeat-containing myosin associated with the myonemes of Gregarina polymorpha

This study presents the first characterization of a WD40 repeat-containing myosin identified in the apicomplexan parasite Gregarina polymorpha. This 222.7 kDa myosin, GpMyoF, contains a canonical myosin motor domain, a neck domain with 6 IQ motifs, a tail domain containing short regions of predicted coiled-coil structure, and, most notably, multiple WD40 repeats at the C-terminus. In other proteins such repeats assemble into a beta-propeller structure implicated in mediating protein-protein interactions. Confocal microscopy suggests that GpMyoF is localized to the annular myonemes that gird the parasite cortex. Extraction studies indicate that this myosin shows an unusually tight association with the cytoskeletal fraction and can be solubilized only by treatment with high pH (11.5) or the anionic detergent sarkosyl. This novel myosin and its homologs, which have been identified in several related genera, appear to be unique to the Apicomplexa and represent the only myosins known to contain the WD40 domain. The function of this myosin in G. polymorpha or any of the other apicomplexan parasites remains uncertain.

Involvement of actin and myosins in Plasmodium berghei ookinete motility

Ookinetes of the genus Plasmodium are motile, invasive cells that develop in the mosquito midgut following ingestion of a parasite-infected blood meal. We show here that ookinetes display gliding motility on glass slides in the presence of insect cells. Moreover, in addition to stationary "flexing" and "twirling" of the cells, two distinct types of movements occur: productive forward translocational motility in straight segment that progresses with an average speed of approximately 6mum/min and rotational motility, which does not lead to forward translocation. Locomotion is reduced by treatment with butanedione monoxime, an inhibitor of myosin ATPase, and by three different actin inhibitors. We also studied the expression during ookinete development of genes encoding actin and two small class XIV myosins, PbMyoA, and PbMyoB. Western immunoblots revealed that PbMyoA is only present in fully mature ookinetes, whilst the other two proteins are additionally expressed in gametocytes and zygotes. Immunofluorescence experiments reveal that MyoA and actin co-localize in the apical tip of the parasite whereas MyoB displays a punctate pattern of expression around the entire cell periphery. Following treatment with jasplakinolide, the apparent level of detectable actin appears to substantially increase and becomes concentrated in a discrete area in the basal pole of the ookinete.

Structure of the MTIP-MyoA complex, a key component of the malaria parasite invasion motor

The causative agents of malaria have developed a sophisticated machinery for entering multiple cell types in the human and insect hosts. In this machinery, a critical interaction occurs between the unusual myosin motor MyoA and the MyoA-tail Interacting Protein (MTIP). Here we present one crystal structure that shows three different conformations of Plasmodium MTIP, one of these in complex with the MyoA-tail, which reveal major conformational changes in the C-terminal domain of MTIP upon binding the MyoA-tail helix, thereby creating several hydrophobic pockets in MTIP that are the recipients of key hydrophobic side chains of MyoA. Because we also show that the MyoA helix is able to block parasite growth, this provides avenues for designing antimalarials.

New insights into myosin evolution and classification

Myosins are eukaryotic actin-dependent molecular motors important for a broad range of functions like muscle contraction, vision, hearing, cell motility, and host cell invasion of apicomplexan parasites. Myosin heavy chains consist of distinct head, neck, and tail domains and have previously been categorized into 18 different classes based on phylogenetic analysis of their conserved heads. Here we describe a comprehensive phylogenetic examination of many previously unclassified myosins, with particular emphasis on sequences from apicomplexan and other chromalveolate protists including the model organism Toxoplasma, the malaria parasite Plasmodium, and the ciliate Tetrahymena. Using different phylogenetic inference methods and taking protein domain architectures, specific amino acid polymorphisms, and organismal distribution into account, we demonstrate a hitherto unrecognized common origin for ciliate and apicomplexan class XIV myosins. Our data also suggest common origins for some apicomplexan myosins and class VI, for classes II and XVIII, for classes XII and XV, and for some microsporidian myosins and class V, thereby reconciling evolutionary history and myosin structure in several cases and corroborating the common coevolution of myosin head, neck, and tail domains. Six novel myosin classes are established to accommodate sequences from chordate metazoans (class XIX), insects (class XX), kinetoplastids (class XXI), and apicomplexans and diatom algae (classes XXII, XXIII, and XXIV). These myosin (sub)classes include sequences with protein domains (FYVE, WW, UBA, ATS1-like, and WD40) previously unknown to be associated with myosin motors. Regarding the apicomplexan "myosome," we significantly update class XIV classification, propose a systematic naming convention, and discuss possible functions in these parasites.

Cellular and Molecular Mechanics of Gliding Locomotion in Eukaryotes

Gliding is a form of substrate-dependent cell locomotion exploited by a variety of disparate cell types. Cells may glide at rates well in excess of 1 microm/sec and do so without the gross distortion of cellular form typical of amoeboid crawling. In the absence of a discrete locomotory organelle, gliding depends upon an assemblage of molecules that links cytoplasmic motor proteins to the cell membrane and thence to the appropriate substrate. Gliding has been most thoroughly studied in the apicomplexan parasites, including Plasmodium and Toxoplasma, which employ a unique assortment of proteins dubbed the glideosome, at the heart of which is a class XIV myosin motor. Actin and myosin also drive the gliding locomotion of raphid diatoms (Bacillariophyceae) as well as the intriguing form of gliding displayed by the spindle-shaped cells of the primitive colonial protist Labyrinthula. Chlamydomonas and other flagellated protists are also able to abandon their more familiar swimming locomotion for gliding, during which time they recruit a motility apparatus independent of that driving flagellar beating.

Actin-Based Motility in the Net Slime MouldLabyrinthula: Evidence for the Role of Myosin in Gliding Movement

In contrast to crawling movement (e.g. in amoebae and tissue cells) the other major class of substratum-associated motility in eukaryotes, gliding, has received relatively little attention. The net slime mold Labyrinthula provides a useful laboratory model for studying this process since it exhibits a particular kind of gliding in its plasmodial stage. Here nucleated spindle cells glide along self-established cytoplasmic trackways in a predominantly unidirectional manner, at 1-2 microm/s. These trackways, upon which gliding is dependent, are held by filopodial tethers some distance off the well-developed reticulopodial mesh anchoring the plasmodium onto the substratum. Reflection interference microscopy resolves this matrix in live plasmodia. The axially disposed cytoskeletal elements of the trackways are revealed by rhodamine-labelled phalloidin to be rich in F-actin. A weft of peripheral, rapidly extending filopodia (50 microm/min) typifies the expanding regions of the plasmodium. Here spindle cells are recruited before emigrating into newly differentiated trackways. Immunoblotting whole plasmodia or a sucrose-soluble cytoplasmic extract reveals a single actin-positive band of Mr 48 kDa. Polyclonal antibodies to two distinct myosin peptide sequences identify a single myosin HC (Mr 96 kDa) in immunoblots. Gliding was reversibly blocked by 10 mM 2,3-butanedione-2-monoxime, a myosin ATPase inhibitor, but it was insensitive to the actin-binding drugs cytochalasin D and phalloidin. We suggest that the force (>50 pN) for gliding motility results from interaction of myosin molecules, associated with the spindle cells, with trackway F-actin via the bothrosomes.

Toxoplasma as a novel system for motility

Motility is a characteristic of most living organisms and often requires specialized structures like cilia or flagella. An alternative is amoeboid movement, where the polymerization/depolymerization of actin leads to the formation of pseudopodia, filopodia and/or lamellipodia that enable the cell to crawl along a surface. Despite their lack of locomotive organelles and in absence of cell deformation, members of the apicomplexan parasites employ a unique form of locomotion called gliding motility to promote their migration across biological barriers and to power host-cell invasion and egress. Detailed studies in Toxoplasma gondii and Plasmodium species have revealed that this unique mode of movement is dependent on a myosin of class XIV and necessitates actin dynamics and the concerted discharge and processing of adhesive proteins. Gliding is essential for the survival and infectivity of these obligate intracellular parasites, which cause severe disease in humans and animals.

Myosin superfamily evolutionary history

The superfamily of myosin proteins found in eukaryotic cells is known to contain at least 18 different classes. Members are classified based on the phylogenetic analysis of the head domains located at the amino terminus of the polypeptide. While phylogenetic relationships provide insights into the functional relatedness of myosins within and between families, the evolutionary history of the myosin superfamily is not revealed by such studies. In order to establish the evolutionary history of the superfamily, we analyzed the representation of myosin gene families in a range of organisms covering the taxonomic spectrum. The amino acid sequences of 232 myosin heavy chains, as well as 65 organisms representing the protist, plant, and animal kingdoms, were included in this study. A phylogenetic tree of organisms was constructed based on several complementary taxonomic classification schemes. The results of the analysis support an evolutionary hypothesis in which myosins II and I evolved the earliest of all the myosin groups. Myosins V and XI evolved from a common myosin II-like ancestor, but the two families diverged to either the plant (XI) or animal (V) lineage. Class VII myosin appeared fourth among the families, and classes VI and IX appeared later during the early period of metazoan radiation. Myosins III, XV, and XVIII appeared after this group, and X appeared during the formative phases of vertebrate evolution. The remaining members of the myosin superfamily (IV, VI, XII, XIII, XIV, XVI, and XVII) are limited in distribution to one or more groups of organisms. The evolutionary data permits one to predict the likelihood that myosin genes absent from a given species are either missing (not found yet because of insufficient data) or lost due to a mutation that removed the gene from an organism's lineage. In conclusion, an analysis of the evolutionary history of the myosin superfamily suggests that early-appearing myosin families function as generalists, carrying out a number of functions in a variety of cell types, while more recently evolved myosin families function as specialists and are limited to a few organisms or a few cell types within organisms.

Myosins of Babesia bovis: molecular characterisation, erythrocyte invasion, and phylogeny

Using degenerate primers, three putative myosin sequences were amplified from Australian isolates of Babesa bovis and confirmed as myosins (termed Bbmyo-A, Bbmyo-B, and Bbmyo-C) from in vitro cultures of the W strain of B. bovis. Comprehensive analysis of 15 apicomplexan myosins suggests that members of Class XIV be defined as those with greater than 35% myosin head sequence identity and that these be further subclassed into groups bearing above 50-60% identity. Bbmyo-A protein bears a strong similarity with other apicomplexan myosin-A type proteins (subclass XIVa), the Bbmyo-B myosin head protein sequence exhibits low identity (35-39%) with all members of Class XIV, and 5'-sequence of Bbmyo-C shows strong identity (60%) with P. falciparum myosin-C protein. Domain analysis revealed five divergent IQ domains within the neck of Pfmyo-C, and a myosin-N terminal domain as well as a classical IQ sequence unusually located within the head converter domain of Bbmyo-B. A cross-reacting antibody directed against P. falciparum myosin-A (Pfmyo-A) revealed a zone of approximately 85 kDa in immunoblots prepared with B. bovis total protein, and immunofluorescence inferred stage-specific myosin-A expression since only 25% of infected erythrocytes with mostly paired B. bovis were immuno-positive. Multiplication of B. bovis in in vitro culture was inhibited by myosin- and actin-binding drugs at concentrations lower than those that inhibit P. falciparum. This study identifies and classifies three myosin genes and an actin gene in B. bovis, and provides the first evidence for the participation of an actomyosin-based motor in erythrocyte invasion in this species of apicomplexan parasite.

Cytoskeleton of apicomplexan parasites

The Apicomplexa are a phylum of diverse obligate intracellular parasites including Plasmodium spp., the cause of malaria; Toxoplasma gondii and Cryptosporidium parvum, opportunistic pathogens of immunocompromised individuals; and Eimeria spp. and Theileria spp., parasites of considerable agricultural importance. These protozoan parasites share distinctive morphological features, cytoskeletal organization, and modes of replication, motility, and invasion. This review summarizes our current understanding of the cytoskeletal elements, the properties of cytoskeletal proteins, and the role of the cytoskeleton in polarity, motility, invasion, and replication. We discuss the unusual properties of actin and myosin in the Apicomplexa, the highly stereotyped microtubule populations in apicomplexans, and a network of recently discovered novel intermediate filament-like elements in these parasites.

Toxoplasma gondii myosins B/C: one gene, two tails, two localizations, and a role in parasite division

In apicomplexan parasites, actin-disrupting drugs and the inhibitor of myosin heavy chain ATPase, 2,3-butanedione monoxime, have been shown to interfere with host cell invasion by inhibiting parasite gliding motility. We report here that the actomyosin system of Toxoplasma gondii also contributes to the process of cell division by ensuring accurate budding of daughter cells. T. gondii myosins B and C are encoded by alternatively spliced mRNAs and differ only in their COOH-terminal tails. MyoB and MyoC showed distinct subcellular localizations and dissimilar solubilities, which were conferred by their tails. MyoC is the first marker selectively concentrated at the anterior and posterior polar rings of the inner membrane complex, structures that play a key role in cell shape integrity during daughter cell biogenesis. When transiently expressed, MyoB, MyoC, as well as the common motor domain lacking the tail did not distribute evenly between daughter cells, suggesting some impairment in proper segregation. Stable overexpression of MyoB caused a significant defect in parasite cell division, leading to the formation of extensive residual bodies, a substantial delay in replication, and loss of acute virulence in mice. Altogether, these observations suggest that MyoB/C products play a role in proper daughter cell budding and separation.