{"title":"Reading the epitranscriptome of the human malaria parasite","authors":"Gayathri Govindaraju, Arumugam Rajavelu","doi":"10.1016/j.bj.2024.100703","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>Epigenetic machinery has emerged as a central player in gene regulation and chromatin organization in Plasmodium spp. Epigenetic modifications on histones and their role in antigenic variation in P. falciparum are widely studied. Recent discoveries on nucleic acid methylome are exciting and provide a new dimension to the apicomplexan protozoan parasite's gene regulatory process. Reports have confirmed that N6-methyl adenosine (m6A) methylation plays a crucial role in the translational plasticity of the human malaria parasite during its development in RBC. The YTH domain (YT521-B Homology) protein in P. falciparum binds to m6A epitranscriptome modifications on the mRNA and regulates protein translation. The binding of the PfYTH domain protein to the m6A-modified mRNA is mediated through a binding pocket formed by aromatic amino acids. The P. falciparum genome encodes two members of YTH domain proteins, i.e., YTH1 and YTH2, and both have distinct roles in dictating the epitranscriptome in human malaria parasites. This review highlights recent advancements in the functions and mechanisms of YTH domain protein's role in translational plasticity in the various developmental stages of the parasite.</p>","PeriodicalId":8934,"journal":{"name":"Biomedical Journal","volume":"254 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1000,"publicationDate":"2024-02-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Biomedical Journal","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bj.2024.100703","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Epigenetic machinery has emerged as a central player in gene regulation and chromatin organization in Plasmodium spp. Epigenetic modifications on histones and their role in antigenic variation in P. falciparum are widely studied. Recent discoveries on nucleic acid methylome are exciting and provide a new dimension to the apicomplexan protozoan parasite's gene regulatory process. Reports have confirmed that N6-methyl adenosine (m6A) methylation plays a crucial role in the translational plasticity of the human malaria parasite during its development in RBC. The YTH domain (YT521-B Homology) protein in P. falciparum binds to m6A epitranscriptome modifications on the mRNA and regulates protein translation. The binding of the PfYTH domain protein to the m6A-modified mRNA is mediated through a binding pocket formed by aromatic amino acids. The P. falciparum genome encodes two members of YTH domain proteins, i.e., YTH1 and YTH2, and both have distinct roles in dictating the epitranscriptome in human malaria parasites. This review highlights recent advancements in the functions and mechanisms of YTH domain protein's role in translational plasticity in the various developmental stages of the parasite.
期刊介绍:
Biomedical Journal publishes 6 peer-reviewed issues per year in all fields of clinical and biomedical sciences for an internationally diverse authorship. Unlike most open access journals, which are free to readers but not authors, Biomedical Journal does not charge for subscription, submission, processing or publication of manuscripts, nor for color reproduction of photographs.
Clinical studies, accounts of clinical trials, biomarker studies, and characterization of human pathogens are within the scope of the journal, as well as basic studies in model species such as Escherichia coli, Caenorhabditis elegans, Drosophila melanogaster, and Mus musculus revealing the function of molecules, cells, and tissues relevant for human health. However, articles on other species can be published if they contribute to our understanding of basic mechanisms of biology.
A highly-cited international editorial board assures timely publication of manuscripts. Reviews on recent progress in biomedical sciences are commissioned by the editors.