The mechanism of action of artemisinin and its derivatives, the most potent of the anti-malarial drugs, is not completely understood.
Investigators present an unbiased chemical proteomics analysis to directly explore this mechanism in Plasmodium falciparum.
They use an alkyne-tagged artemisinin analogue coupled with biotin to identify 124 artemisinin covalent binding protein targets, many of which are involved in the essential biological processes of the parasite. Such a broad targeting spectrum disrupts the biochemical landscape of the parasite and causes its death.
Furthermore, using alkyne-tagged artemisinin coupled with a fluorescent dye to monitor protein binding, authors show that haem, rather than free ferrous iron, is predominantly responsible for artemisinin activation.
The haem derives primarily from the parasite’s haem biosynthesis pathway at the early ring stage and from haemoglobin digestion at the latter stages.
These results support a unifying model to explain the action and specificity of artemisinin in parasite killing.
http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2015/151222/ncomms10111/full/ncomms10111.html
Edited
Latest News
Role of ECM in brain memory
By newseditor
Posted 13 May
All individuals with two co…
By newseditor
Posted 12 May
Autoantibody patterns in pa…
By newseditor
Posted 12 May
How brains convert sounds t…
By newseditor
Posted 12 May
Mice with traits of Tourett…
By newseditor
Posted 11 May
Other Top Stories
Members of the KCTD family are major regulators of movement via cAM…
Read more
Preventing inherited embryonic cardiac lethality
Read more
Differential roles of cellular chaperones in neuronal protein aggre…
Read more
Optogenetic control of parathyroid hormone secretion to prevent bon…
Read more
Depletion of mitochondrial enzyme linked to alcohol-associated live…
Read more
Protocols
Mime-seq 2.0: a method to s…
By newseditor
Posted 13 May
Improved detection of DNA r…
By newseditor
Posted 09 May
Single-cell adhesive profil…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Parasympathetic neurons der…
By newseditor
Posted 07 May
Non-invasive measurements o…
By newseditor
Posted 05 May
Publications
Endothelial cell expression…
By newseditor
Posted 13 May
Senescence: A DNA damage re…
By newseditor
Posted 13 May
Antigen-specific Fab profil…
By newseditor
Posted 12 May
Differential representation…
By newseditor
Posted 12 May
Glucose hypometabolism prom…
By newseditor
Posted 12 May
Presentations
Hydrogels in Drug Delivery
By newseditor
Posted 12 Apr
Lipids
By newseditor
Posted 31 Dec
Cell biology of carbohydrat…
By newseditor
Posted 29 Nov
RNA interference (RNAi)
By newseditor
Posted 23 Oct
RNA structure and functions
By newseditor
Posted 19 Oct
Posters
A chemical biology/modular…
By newseditor
Posted 22 Aug
Single-molecule covalent ma…
By newseditor
Posted 04 Jul
ASCO-2020-HEALTH SERVICES R…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar
ASCO-2020-HEAD AND NECK CANCER
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar
ASCO-2020-GENITOURINARY CAN…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar