title: Aspartate aminotransferase: bridging carbohydrate and energy metabolism in Plasmodium falciparum.
abstract: In this mini-review we briefly examine and summarize evidence on the role of the plasmodial aspartate aminotransferase (AspAT) of the malarial parasite. Recent data have provided information on the products of the purine salvage pathway as well as the glycolytic and oxidative phosphorylation pathways, suggesting that the reaction catalyzed by AspAT is an essential step in all these biochemical processes. While the biological role of the oxidative phosphorylation cycle still remains to be demonstrated, the presence of a single protein that is functional in multiple pathways (i.e. amino acid/purine/pyrimidine biosynthesis and carbohydrate metabolism) provides a high potential for the development of novel strategies to combat the spread of multi-drug resistant malaria.
authors.affiliation: Department of Parasitology, Institute of Biomedical Science, University of São Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carsten
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wrenger
authors.forename: Ingrid B
authors.initials: IB
authors.lastname: Muller
authors.forename: Ariel M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Silber
authors.forename: Rositsa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jordanova
authors.forename: Victor S
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Lamzin
authors.forename: Matthew R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Groves
mesh_terms: D000596:Amino Acids / Q000096:biosynthesis; D000962:Antimalarials / Q000494:pharmacology; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases / Q000378:metabolism*; D050260:Carbohydrate Metabolism; D004351:Drug Resistance; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D006801:Humans; D016778:Malaria, Falciparum / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000469:parasitology*; D010085:Oxidative Phosphorylation; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism*; D011687:Purines / Q000096:biosynthesis; D011743:Pyrimidines / Q000096:biosynthesis
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D000962:Antimalarials; D011687:Purines; D011743:Pyrimidines; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases