No abstract

One of the first steps in understanding a protein's function is to determine its localization; however, the methods for localizing proteins in some systems have not kept pace with the developments in other fields, creating a bottleneck in the analysis of the large datasets that are generated in the post-genomic era. To address this, we developed tools for tagging proteins in trypanosomatids. We made a plasmid that, when coupled with long primer PCR, can be used to produce transgenes at their endogenous loci encoding proteins tagged at either terminus or within the protein coding sequence. This system can also be used to generate deletion mutants to investigate the function of different protein domains. We show that the length of homology required for successful integration precluded long primer PCR tagging in Leishmania mexicana. Hence, we developed plasmids and a fusion PCR approach to create gene tagging amplicons with sufficiently long homologous regions for targeted integration, suitable for use in trypanosomatids with less efficient homologous recombination than Trypanosoma brucei. Importantly, we have automated the primer design, developed universal PCR conditions and optimized the workflow to make this system reliable, efficient and scalable such that whole genome tagging is now an achievable goal.

SummaryMicrobial pathogens use environmental cues to trigger the developmental events needed to infect mammalian hosts or transmit to disease-vectors. The parasites causing African sleeping sickness respond to citrate/cis aconitate (CCA) to initiate life-cycle development when transmitted to their tsetse-fly vector. This requires hypersensitization of the parasites to CCA by exposure to low temperature, conditions encountered after tsetse feeding at dusk or dawn. Here we identify a carboxylate-transporter family, PAD (Proteins Associated with Differentiation) required for perception of this differentiation signal. Consistent with predictions for the response of trypanosomes to CCA, PAD proteins are expressed on the surface of the transmission-competent ‘stumpy-form’ parasites in the bloodstream and at least one member is thermoregulated, showing elevated expression and surface-access at low-temperature. Moreover, RNAi-mediated ablation of PAD expression diminishes CCA-induced differentiation and eliminates CCA-hypersensitivity under cold-shock conditions. As well as being molecular transducers of the differentiation signal in these parasites, PAD proteins provide the first surface-marker able to discriminate the transmission-stage of trypanosomes in their mammalian host.

Viability of the tsetse fly-transmitted African trypanosome Trypanosoma brucei depends on maintenance and expression of its kinetoplast (kDNA), the mitochondrial genome of this parasite and a putative target for veterinary and human antitrypanosomatid drugs. However, the closely related animal pathogens T. evansi and T. equiperdum are transmitted independently of tsetse flies and survive without a functional kinetoplast for reasons that have remained unclear. Here, we provide definitive evidence that single amino acid changes in the nuclearly encoded F 1 F O -ATPase subunit γ can compensate for complete physical loss of kDNA in these parasites. Our results provide insight into the molecular mechanism of compensation for kDNA loss by showing F O -independent generation of the mitochondrial membrane potential with increased dependence on the ADP/ATP carrier. Our findings also suggest that, in the pathogenic bloodstream stage of T. brucei, the huge and energetically demanding apparatus required for kDNA maintenance and expression serves the production of a single F 1 F O -ATPase subunit. These results have important implications for drug discovery and our understanding of the evolution of these parasites.dourine | surra | dyskinetoplastic | RNA editing | mitochondrial DNA

The mechanisms regulating cell layer organisation in developing plant organs are fundamental to plant growth, but remain largely uninvestigated. We have studied the receptor kinase-encoding ARABIDOPSIS CRINKLY4 gene and shown that its expression is restricted to the L1 cell layer of most meristems and organ primordia, including those of the ovule integuments. Insertion mutations show that ARABIDOPSIS CRINKLY4 is required for regulation of cellular organisation during the development of sepal margins and ovule integument outgrowth. We show that ARABIDOPSIS CRINKLY4 encodes a functional kinase that, in ovules and possibly other tissues, is abundant in anticlinal and the inner periclinal plasma membrane of 'outside' cells. We propose that ARABIDOPSIS CRINKLY4 may be involved in maintaining L1 cell layer integrity by receiving and transmitting signals from neighbouring L1 cells and/or from underlying cell layers.

BackgroundInfection with Trypanosoma cruzi causes Chagas disease, a major public health problem throughout Latin America. There is no vaccine and the only drugs have severe side effects. Efforts to generate new therapies are hampered by limitations in our understanding of parasite biology and disease pathogenesis. Studies are compromised by the complexity of the disease, the long-term nature of the infection, and the fact that parasites are barely detectable during the chronic stage. In addition, functional dissection of T. cruzi biology has been restricted by the limited flexibility of the genetic manipulation technology applicable to this parasite.Methodology/Principal findingsHere, we describe two technical innovations, which will allow the role of the parasite in disease progression to be better assessed. First, we generated a T. cruzi reporter strain that expresses a fusion protein comprising red-shifted luciferase and green fluorescent protein domains. Bioluminescence allows the kinetics of infection to be followed within a single animal, and specific foci of infection to be pinpointed in excised tissues. Fluorescence can then be used to visualise individual parasites in tissue sections to study host-parasite interactions at a cellular level. Using this strategy, we have been routinely able to find individual parasites within chronically infected murine tissues for the first time. The second advance is the incorporation of a streamlined CRISPR/Cas9 functionality into this reporter strain that can facilitate genome editing using a PCR-based approach that does not require DNA cloning. This system allows the rapid generation of null mutants and fluorescently tagged parasites in a background where the in vivo phenotype can be rapidly assessed.Conclusions/SignificanceThe techniques described here will have multiple applications for studying aspects of T. cruzi biology and Chagas disease pathogenesis previously inaccessible to conventional approaches. The reagents and cell lines have been generated as a community resource and are freely available on request.

Plasma membrane-to-plasma membrane connections are common features of eukaryotic cells, with cytoskeletal frameworks below the respective membranes underpinning these connections. A defining feature of Trypanosoma brucei is the lateral attachment of its single flagellum to the cell body, which is mediated by a cytoskeletal structure called the flagellum attachment zone (FAZ). The FAZ is a key morphogenetic structure. Disruption of FAZ assembly can lead to flagellum detachment and dramatic changes in cell shape. To understand this complex structure, the identity of more of its constituent proteins is required. Here, we have used both proteomics and bioinformatics to identify eight new FAZ proteins. Using inducible expression of FAZ proteins tagged with eYFP we demonstrate that the site of FAZ assembly is close to the flagellar pocket at the proximal end of the FAZ. This contrasts with the flagellum, which is assembled at its distal end; hence, these two interconnected cytoskeletal structures have distinct spatially separated assembly sites. This challenging result has many implications for understanding the process of cell morphogenesis and interpreting mutant phenotypes.

The transition zone (TZ) of eukaryotic cilia and flagella is a structural intermediate between the basal body and the axoneme that regulates ciliary traffic. Mutations in genes encoding TZ proteins (TZPs) cause human inherited diseases (ciliopathies). Here, we use the trypanosome to identify TZ components and localize them to TZ subdomains, showing that the Bardet-Biedl syndrome complex (BBSome) is more distal in the TZ than the Meckel syndrome (MKS) complex. Several of the TZPs identified here have human orthologs. Functional analysis shows essential roles for TZPs in motility, in building the axoneme central pair apparatus and in flagellum biogenesis. Analysis using RNAi and HaloTag fusion protein approaches reveals that most TZPs (including the MKS ciliopathy complex) show long-term stable association with the TZ, whereas the BBSome is dynamic. We propose that some Bardet-Biedl syndrome and MKS pleiotropy may be caused by mutations that impact TZP complex dynamics.transition zone | cilium/flagellum | BBSome | MKS/B9 complex | trypanosome C ilia, or flagella (the two terms are used here interchangeably), are multifunctional organelles that were present in the last common eukaryotic ancestor (1). Defects in cilia are responsible for pleiotropic human diseases (called ciliopathies) and their function is essential for pathogenesis in protozoan parasites (2, 3).During ciliogenesis, a microtubule organizing center called the "basal body" docks at the membrane. Basal bodies are built from nine microtubule triplets and two microtubules from each triplet extend to form a transition zone (TZ) and, ultimately, the axoneme. Thus, the TZ represents a structural junction between the basal body and the axoneme.As expected from its strategic position between the basal body and the axoneme, the TZ acts as a "ciliary gate" that controls ciliary composition and function (4). Many ciliopathies are caused by defects in complexes that associate with the TZ, including Meckel syndrome (MKS), Joubert syndrome and Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS). Studies using murine kidney epithelial cells and embryos suggest that the MKS complex demarcates the ciliary membrane by forming a diffusion barrier at the base of the cilium (5-7). On the other hand, the BBS complex (BBSome) is an adapter for intraflagellar transport (IFT) complexes that cross the TZ barrier to transport sensory proteins between the ciliary membrane and the cell body (8, 9).The TZ has distinctive structural features. At the proximal boundary of the TZ, where the basal body C tubule terminates, a "terminal plate" crosses the TZ. Studies in Tetrahymena suggest that the terminal plate contains pores for the passage of IFT "trains" that deliver axonemal components to the distal tip of flagella (10). Striated transitional fibers radiate from the distal end of the basal body triplets to join the plasma membrane (11-14), forming blades thought to create a physical barrier preventing vesicles from entering the ciliary lumen. Electron microscopy (EM) studies in Chlamydomonas suggest that...