Plasmodium SAS4: basal body component of male cell which is dispensable for parasite transmission

Zeeshan, Mohammad; Brady, Declan; Markus, Robert; Vaughan, Sue; Ferguson, David; Holder, Anthony A.; Tewari, Rita

Abstract

The centriole/basal body (CBB) is an evolutionarily conserved organelle acting as a microtubule organising centre (MTOC) to nucleate cilia, flagella, and the centrosome. SAS4/CPAP is a conserved component associated with BB biogenesis in many model flagellated cells. Plasmodium, a divergent unicellular eukaryote and causative agent of malaria, displays an atypical, closed mitosis with an MTOC (or centriolar plaque), reminiscent of an acentriolar MTOC, embedded in the nuclear membrane. Mitosis during male gamete formation is accompanied by flagella formation. There are two MTOCs in male gametocytes: the acentriolar nuclear envelope MTOC for the mitotic spindle and an outer centriolar MTOC (the basal body) that organises flagella assembly in the cytoplasm. We show the coordinated location, association and assembly of SAS4 with the BB component, kinesin-8B, but no association with the kinetochore protein, NDC80, indicating that SAS4 is part of the BB and outer centriolar MTOC in the cytoplasm. Deletion of the SAS4 gene produced no phenotype, indicating that it is not essential for either male gamete formation or parasite transmission.

Citation

Zeeshan, M., Brady, D., Markus, R., Vaughan, S., Ferguson, D., Holder, A. A., & Tewari, R. (2022). Plasmodium SAS4: basal body component of male cell which is dispensable for parasite transmission. Life Science Alliance, 5(9), Article e202101329. https://doi.org/10.26508/lsa.202101329

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 28, 2022
• Online Publication Date: May 12, 2022
• Publication Date: May 12, 2022
• Deposit Date: May 20, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: May 20, 2022
• Journal: Life Science Alliance
• Print ISSN: 2575-1077
• Electronic ISSN: 2575-1077
• Publisher: Life Science Alliance
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 5
• Issue: 9
• Article Number: e202101329
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.26508/lsa.202101329
• Keywords: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis; Plant Science; Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (miscellaneous); Ecology
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/8049707
• Publisher URL: https://www.life-science-alliance.org/content/5/9/e202101329/tab-rc