title: Apicoplast triose phosphate transporter (TPT) gene knockout is lethal for Plasmodium.
abstract: The C3, C5, C6 type sugar phosphate transporters bring sugars inside apicoplast, thus providing energy, reducing power and elements like carbon to apicoplast. Plasmodium berghei has two C3 type sugar phosphate transporters in the membrane of apicoplast: triose phosphate transporter (TPT) and phosphoenolpyruvate transporter (PPT). Here we report that P. berghei TPT knockout parasites failed to survive. However, PPT knockout parasite behaved similar to the wild type in the blood stages. The absence of PPT in other life stages, leads to defects in the development of parasite and was required at both mosquito as well as liver stages. This study also underlines the essentiality of triose transporters for apicoplast and its downstream pathways.
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India.
authors.forename: Tanushree
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Banerjee
authors.forename: Dabbu Kumar
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Jaijyan
authors.forename: Namita
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Surolia
authors.forename: Agam Prasad
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Avadhesha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Surolia
mesh_terms: D002470:Cell Survival; D055786:Gene Knockout Techniques; D020043:Genes, Essential; D015388:Organelles / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D028061:Phosphate Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D010962:Plasmodium berghei / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D013403:Sugar Phosphates / Q000378:metabolism*; D014306:Trioses / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D028061:Phosphate Transport Proteins; D013403:Sugar Phosphates; D014306:Trioses