Abstract
The translationally controlled tumor protein TCTP, is a universally conserved protein that seems to be of essential function in all systems tested so far. TCTP is involved in a multitude of cellular functions including cell cycle control, cell division, apoptosis and many more. The mechanism of how TCTP is involved in most of these functions remains elusive. Here we describe that TCTP is a cytoplasmic protein involved in cell cycle regulation and heat stress response in the bloodstream form of Trypanosoma brucei.
Highlights
Trypanosoma brucei is a single celled protozoan parasite and the causative agent of human African sleeping sickness and Nagana in cattle
We recently showed that T. brucei contains two isoforms TCTP1 and TCTP2 that are exclusively expressed in the procyclic form (PCF) and bloodstream form (BSF) parasites, respectively [13]
We have previously reported that the T. brucei genome encodes two paralogues of the translationally controlled tumor protein and have named them TCTP1 and TCTP2 [13]
Summary
Trypanosoma brucei is a single celled protozoan parasite and the causative agent of human African sleeping sickness and Nagana in cattle. The translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) is highly conserved among eukaryotes and is involved in a large variety of processes like cell growth and development, the cell cycle, apoptosis and the protection against cellular stresses, including oxidative stress and heat stress [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8]. We recently showed that T. brucei contains two isoforms TCTP1 and TCTP2 that are exclusively expressed in the procyclic form (PCF) and bloodstream form (BSF) parasites, respectively [13]. TCTP1 is localized in the cytoplasm of PCF cells and loss of the protein causes a growth defect and leads to several phenotypes including a decrease in number and enlargement of acidocalcisomes (ACs) as well as changes in mitochondrial morphology. While the cytoplasmic localization of TCTP has been described in several systems, the protein is associated with other structures in the cell. How TCTP is released out of the cells remains enigmatic, but interestingly a similar observation was recently reported in trypanosome infected tsetse flies were TCTP might be involved in manipulating the microbiota of the fly [18]
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