Structural evaluation of the SUMOlation activation in the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum

• Grant number: 19/26771-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: June 10, 2020
• End date: September 09, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Parasitology - Protozoology of Parasites
• Principal Investigator: Carsten Wrenger
• Grantee: Daffiny Sumam de Oliveira
• Supervisor: Christian Jochen Betzel
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Universität Hamburg (UHH), Germany
• Associated to the scholarship: 18/10150-3 - Understanding the cross-talk between SUMOylation and oxidative stress in Plasmodium falciparum, BP.IC

Abstract

Reversible post-translational modification of proteins by ubiquitin (Ub) and ubiquitin-like modifiers (Ubls) serves an essential regulatory mechanism for fundamental cellular processes such as cell cycle progression, DNA damage repair, nucleocytoplasmic transport, transcription, and chromatin remodelling. Protein modification by small ubiquitin-like modifiers (SUMOs) is mediated by the conjugation of the respected Ub/Ubls to target proteins proceeds through the sequential interactions and activities of parallel cascades of enzymes that are structurally and mechanistically related. E1 enzymes initiate SUMO conjugation cascades by catalysing the adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-dependent activation and transfer of their cognate SUMO to E2-conjugating enzymes, which then function with an array of E3 ligases to catalyse the formation of an isopeptide bond linking the SUMO to target proteins. SUMO E1 is a modular, multi-domain ~110kDa heterodimer comprised of SUMO-activating enzyme 1 (Sae1) and 2 (Sae2) subunits that harbour two catalytic activities required for activation of SUMO. Within this proposal we would like to shed light on SUMO activation process of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum by structural analysis. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

SUMAM DE OLIVEIRA, DAFFINY; KRONENBERGER, THALES; PALMISANO, GIUSEPPE; WRENGER, CARSTEN; DE SOUZA, EDMARCIA ELISA. Targeting SUMOylation in Plasmodium as a Potential Target for Malaria Therapy. FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY, v. 11, JUN 10 2021. (18/10150-3, 20/04923-0, 19/26771-0, 20/12277-0, 17/03966-4, 18/18257-1, 18/15549-1, 15/26722-8)