title: Cofactor-independent phosphoglycerate mutase is an essential gene in procyclic form Trypanosoma brucei.
abstract: Glycolysis and gluconeogenesis are, in part, driven by the interconversion of 3- and 2-phosphoglycerate (3-PG and 2-PG) which is performed by phosphoglycerate mutases (PGAMs) which can be cofactor dependant (dPGAM) or cofactor independent (iPGAM). The African trypanosome, Trypanosoma brucei, possesses the iPGAM form which is thought to play an important role in glycolysis. Here, we report on the use of RNA interference to down-regulate the T. brucei iPGAM in procyclic form T. brucei and evaluation of the resulting phenotype. We first demonstrated biochemically that depletion of the steady state levels of iPGM mRNA correlates with a marked reduction of enzyme activity. We further show that iPGAM is required for cell growth in procyclic T. brucei.
authors.affiliation: The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR), 9712 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD 20850, USA. adjikeng@tigr.org
authors.forename: Appolinaire
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Djikeng
authors.forename: Sylvine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Raverdy
authors.forename: Jeremy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Foster
authors.forename: Daniella
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bartholomeu
authors.forename: Yinhua
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Najib M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: El-Sayed
authors.forename: Clotilde
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Carlow
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003067:Coenzymes; D020043:Genes, Essential / Q000235:genetics*; D010736:Phosphoglycerate Mutase / Q000235:genetics*; D013997:Time Factors; D014346:Trypanosoma brucei brucei / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D003067:Coenzymes; D010736:Phosphoglycerate Mutase