The Protein Interaction Landscapes of the Apicomplexan Parasites Toxoplasma gondii and Plasmodium falciparum
Year: 2021
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Apicomplexan parasites, Toxoplasma gondii and Plasmodium falciparum, represent a significant burden to human health. With growing resistance to frontline drugs, new therapeutics are needed to combat these parasites. Their lifecycles are driven by the proteome of its unique cellular architecture: much of which is not fully resolved or characterized. Here we seek to gain insight into the global organization of proteins and identify novel protein complexes by generating high confidence maps of protein interactions in both organisms. This thesis evaluates the quality of these networks by rigorous benchmarking with available biological datasets. Predicted protein complexes successfully recapitulate experimentally characterized complexes from literature and predict novel complexes, including novel mitochondrial and apicomplexan-specific organelle localized complexes. These analyses identify novel components to parasitic pathways, such as host invasion and host interactions. In addition, these networks provide a scaffolding platform for the apicomplexan research community to integrate genomic-scale datasets and generate testable hypotheses.
Source: TSpace (University of Toronto)
Author: Grant C. Stevens
Language: English
Subfield: Parasitology
Field: Immunology and Microbiology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W3152683568