title: A fatty-acid synthesis mechanism specialized for parasitism.
abstract: Most cells use either a type I or type II synthase to make fatty acids. Trypanosoma brucei, the sleeping sickness parasite, provides the first example of a third mechanism for this process. Trypanosomes use microsomal elongases to synthesize fatty acids de novo, whereas other cells use elongases to make long-chain fatty acids even longer. The modular nature of the pathway allows synthesis of different fatty-acid end products, which have important roles in trypanosome biology. Indeed, this newly discovered mechanism seems ideally suited for the parasitic lifestyle.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Chemistry, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, 725 North Wolfe Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.
authors.forename: Soo Hee
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Jennifer L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Stephens
authors.forename: Paul T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Englund
mesh_terms: D000123:Acetyltransferases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D053898:Biosynthetic Pathways; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D000081031:Fatty Acid Elongases; D064429:Fatty Acid Synthases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000096:biosynthesis; D017261:Glycosylphosphatidylinositols / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D018320:Leishmania major / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D008018:Life Cycle Stages; D008861:Microsomes / Q000201:enzymology*; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000201:enzymology; D014346:Trypanosoma brucei brucei / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D014349:Trypanosoma cruzi / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; D017261:Glycosylphosphatidylinositols; D000123:Acetyltransferases; D000081031:Fatty Acid Elongases; D064429:Fatty Acid Synthases