Cyclic AMP signaling in trypanosomatids.
Curative interference with signal transduction pathways is a spectacularly successful concept in many domains of modern pharmacology; indeed, the 'wonder drug' Viagra is but a humble inhibitor of a cyclic GMP (cGMP)-specific phosphodiesterase and, thus, interferes with cGMP-signaling in a strategic organ. In fact, about half of the 100 most successful drugs currently on the market act through modulating cellular signal transduction. Despite these encouraging findings, signal transduction pathways as potential drug targets in trypanosomatids have remained largely unexplored. However, what little is known indicates that adenylyl cyclases of trypanosomatids, and probably other enzymes of the cyclic nucleotide signaling pathways, are significantly different from their mammalian counterparts. Here, Christina Naula and Thomas Seebeck summarize what is known about cAMP signal transduction in trypanosomatids.
Naula
C
C
University of Bern, Institute of General Microbiology, Switzerland.
Seebeck
T
T
D000262:Adenylyl Cyclases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D014355:Chagas Disease / Q000469:parasitology; D000242:Cyclic AMP / Q000502:physiology*; D017868:Cyclic AMP-Dependent Protein Kinases / Q000502:physiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D014346:Trypanosoma brucei brucei / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D014349:Trypanosoma cruzi / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D014353:Trypanosomiasis, African / Q000469:parasitology; D014643:Variant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma / Q000502:physiology
D014643:Variant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma; D000242:Cyclic AMP; D017868:Cyclic AMP-Dependent Protein Kinases; D000262:Adenylyl Cyclases