Characterisation of the OTU domain deubiquitinase complement of Toxoplasma gondii
Details
Publication Year 2023-06,Volume 6,Issue #6,Page e202201710
Journal Title
LIfe Science Alliance
Abstract
The phylum Apicomplexa contains several parasitic species of medical and agricultural importance. The ubiquitination machinery remains, for the most part, uncharacterised in apicomplexan parasites, despite the important roles that it plays in eukaryotic biology. Bioinformatic analysis of the ubiquitination machinery in apicomplexan parasites revealed an expanded ovarian tumour domain-containing (OTU) deubiquitinase (DUB) family in Toxoplasma, potentially reflecting functional importance in apicomplexan parasites. This study presents comprehensive characterisation of Toxoplasma OTU DUBs. AlphaFold-guided structural analysis not only confirmed functional orthologues found across eukaryotes, but also identified apicomplexan-specific enzymes, subsequently enabling discovery of a cryptic OTU DUB in Plasmodium species. Comprehensive biochemical characterisation of 11 Toxoplasma OTU DUBs revealed activity against ubiquitin- and NEDD8-based substrates and revealed ubiquitin linkage preferences for Lys6-, Lys11-, Lys48-, and Lys63-linked chain types. We show that accessory domains in Toxoplasma OTU DUBs impose linkage preferences, and in case of apicomplexan-specific TgOTU9, we discover a cryptic ubiquitin-binding domain that is essential for TgOTU9 activity. Using the auxin-inducible degron (AID) to generate knockdown parasite lines, TgOTUD6B was found to be important for Toxoplasma growth.
Publisher
LLC
Research Division(s)
Ubiquitin Signalling; Infectious Diseases And Immune Defence
PubMed ID
36958824
Open Access at Publisher's Site
https://doi.org/10.26508/lsa.202201710
Terms of Use/Rights Notice
Refer to copyright notice on published article.


Creation Date: 2023-04-13 11:09:57
Last Modified: 2023-04-13 12:09:30
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