A Toxoplasma gondii locus required for the direct manipulation of host mitochondria has maintained multiple ancestral functions

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Only some Mitochondrial association factor 1 (MAF1) paralogs in Toxoplasma gondii mediate association between the vacuole and host mitochondria. Using comparative structural analyses we find that functional differences are determined by only a few residues in the C‐terminus. We also show that a conserved vestigial ADPr binding cleft may represent an ancestral function that was likely present in an ancestral MAF1 ortholog that had yet to acquire the ability to manipulate host mitochondria during infection.

Source: Molecular Microbiology - March 1, 2018 Category: Microbiology Authors: Matthew L. Blank, Michelle L. Parker, Raghavendran Ramaswamy, Cameron J. Powell, Elizabeth D. English, Yaw Adomako ‐Ankomah, Lena F. Pernas, Sean D. Workman, John C. Boothroyd, Martin J. Boulanger, Jon P. Boyle Tags: Research Article Source Type: research