Toxoplasma gondii exploits the host ESCRT machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins.

Toxoplasma gondii is a master manipulator capable of effectively siphoning the resources from the host cell for its intracellular subsistence. However, the molecular underpinnings of how the parasite gains resources from its host remain largely unknown. Residing within a non-fusogenic parasitophorou...

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Main Authors: Yolanda Rivera-Cuevas, Joshua Mayoral, Manlio Di Cristina, Anna-Lisa E Lawrence, Einar B Olafsson, Romir K Patel, Dishari Thornhill, Benjamin S Waldman, Akira Ono, Jonathan Z Sexton, Sebastian Lourido, Louis M Weiss, Vern B Carruthers
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2021-12-01
Series:PLoS Pathogens
Online Access:https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1010138&type=printable
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author Yolanda Rivera-Cuevas
Joshua Mayoral
Manlio Di Cristina
Anna-Lisa E Lawrence
Einar B Olafsson
Romir K Patel
Dishari Thornhill
Benjamin S Waldman
Akira Ono
Jonathan Z Sexton
Sebastian Lourido
Louis M Weiss
Vern B Carruthers
author_facet Yolanda Rivera-Cuevas
Joshua Mayoral
Manlio Di Cristina
Anna-Lisa E Lawrence
Einar B Olafsson
Romir K Patel
Dishari Thornhill
Benjamin S Waldman
Akira Ono
Jonathan Z Sexton
Sebastian Lourido
Louis M Weiss
Vern B Carruthers
author_sort Yolanda Rivera-Cuevas
collection DOAJ
description Toxoplasma gondii is a master manipulator capable of effectively siphoning the resources from the host cell for its intracellular subsistence. However, the molecular underpinnings of how the parasite gains resources from its host remain largely unknown. Residing within a non-fusogenic parasitophorous vacuole (PV), the parasite must acquire resources across the limiting membrane of its replicative niche, which is decorated with parasite proteins including those secreted from dense granules. We discovered a role for the host Endosomal Sorting Complex Required for Transport (ESCRT) machinery in host cytosolic protein uptake by T. gondii by disrupting host ESCRT function. We identified the transmembrane dense granule protein TgGRA14, which contains motifs homologous to the late domain motifs of HIV-1 Gag, as a candidate for the recruitment of the host ESCRT machinery to the PV membrane. Using an HIV-1 virus-like particle (VLP) release assay, we found that the motif-containing portion of TgGRA14 is sufficient to substitute for HIV-1 Gag late domain to mediate ESCRT-dependent VLP budding. We also show that TgGRA14 is proximal to and interacts with host ESCRT components and other dense granule proteins during infection. Furthermore, analysis of TgGRA14-deficient parasites revealed a marked reduction in ingestion of a host cytosolic protein compared to WT parasites. Thus, we propose a model in which T. gondii recruits the host ESCRT machinery to the PV where it can interact with TgGRA14 for the internalization of host cytosolic proteins across the PV membrane (PVM). These findings provide new insight into how T. gondii accesses contents of the host cytosol by exploiting a key pathway for vesicular budding and membrane scission.
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publisher Public Library of Science (PLoS)
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spelling doaj-art-cd8bd035ddc44eb6a2451e248389231b2025-08-20T02:17:47ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS Pathogens1553-73661553-73742021-12-011712e101013810.1371/journal.ppat.1010138Toxoplasma gondii exploits the host ESCRT machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins.Yolanda Rivera-CuevasJoshua MayoralManlio Di CristinaAnna-Lisa E LawrenceEinar B OlafssonRomir K PatelDishari ThornhillBenjamin S WaldmanAkira OnoJonathan Z SextonSebastian LouridoLouis M WeissVern B CarruthersToxoplasma gondii is a master manipulator capable of effectively siphoning the resources from the host cell for its intracellular subsistence. However, the molecular underpinnings of how the parasite gains resources from its host remain largely unknown. Residing within a non-fusogenic parasitophorous vacuole (PV), the parasite must acquire resources across the limiting membrane of its replicative niche, which is decorated with parasite proteins including those secreted from dense granules. We discovered a role for the host Endosomal Sorting Complex Required for Transport (ESCRT) machinery in host cytosolic protein uptake by T. gondii by disrupting host ESCRT function. We identified the transmembrane dense granule protein TgGRA14, which contains motifs homologous to the late domain motifs of HIV-1 Gag, as a candidate for the recruitment of the host ESCRT machinery to the PV membrane. Using an HIV-1 virus-like particle (VLP) release assay, we found that the motif-containing portion of TgGRA14 is sufficient to substitute for HIV-1 Gag late domain to mediate ESCRT-dependent VLP budding. We also show that TgGRA14 is proximal to and interacts with host ESCRT components and other dense granule proteins during infection. Furthermore, analysis of TgGRA14-deficient parasites revealed a marked reduction in ingestion of a host cytosolic protein compared to WT parasites. Thus, we propose a model in which T. gondii recruits the host ESCRT machinery to the PV where it can interact with TgGRA14 for the internalization of host cytosolic proteins across the PV membrane (PVM). These findings provide new insight into how T. gondii accesses contents of the host cytosol by exploiting a key pathway for vesicular budding and membrane scission.https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1010138&type=printable
spellingShingle Yolanda Rivera-Cuevas
Joshua Mayoral
Manlio Di Cristina
Anna-Lisa E Lawrence
Einar B Olafsson
Romir K Patel
Dishari Thornhill
Benjamin S Waldman
Akira Ono
Jonathan Z Sexton
Sebastian Lourido
Louis M Weiss
Vern B Carruthers
Toxoplasma gondii exploits the host ESCRT machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins.
PLoS Pathogens
title Toxoplasma gondii exploits the host ESCRT machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins.
title_full Toxoplasma gondii exploits the host ESCRT machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins.
title_fullStr Toxoplasma gondii exploits the host ESCRT machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins.
title_full_unstemmed Toxoplasma gondii exploits the host ESCRT machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins.
title_short Toxoplasma gondii exploits the host ESCRT machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins.
title_sort toxoplasma gondii exploits the host escrt machinery for parasite uptake of host cytosolic proteins
url https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1010138&type=printable
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