title: Purine and pyrimidine transport in pathogenic protozoa: from biology to therapy.
abstract: Purine salvage is an essential function for all obligate parasitic protozoa studied to date and most are also capable of efficient uptake of preformed pyrimidines. Much progress has been made in the identification and characterisation of protozoan purine and pyrimidine transporters. While the genes encoding protozoan or metazoan pyrimidine transporters have yet to be identified, numerous purine transporters have now been cloned. All protozoan purine transporter-encoding genes characterised to date have been of the Equilibrative Nucleoside Transporter family conserved in a great variety of eukaryote organisms. However, these protozoan transporters have been shown to be sufficiently different from mammalian transporters to mediate selective uptake of therapeutic agents. Recent studies are increasingly addressing the structure and substrate recognition mechanisms of these vital transport proteins.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomedical and Life Sciences, Division of Infection and Immunity, Joseph Black Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, UK. H.de-Koning@bio.gla.ac.uk
authors.forename: Harry P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: de Koning
authors.forename: Daniel J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Bridges
authors.forename: Richard J S
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Burchmore
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000981:Antiprotozoal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000472:pathogenicity* / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D033702:Nucleobase Transport Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D033703:Nucleoside Transport Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011528:Protozoan Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000469:parasitology*; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011687:Purines / Q000378:metabolism*; D011743:Pyrimidines / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000981:Antiprotozoal Agents; D033702:Nucleobase Transport Proteins; D033703:Nucleoside Transport Proteins; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; D011687:Purines; D011743:Pyrimidines