Plastid biogenesis in malaria parasites requires the interactions and catalytic activity of the Clp proteolytic system

Anat Florentin, Dylon R. Stephens, Carrie F. Brooks, Rodrigo P. Baptista, Vasant Muralidharan

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    22 Scopus citations

    Abstract

    The human malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, contains an essential plastid called the apicoplast. Most apicoplast proteins are encoded by the nuclear genome and it is unclear how the plastid proteome is regulated. Here, we study an apicoplast-localized caseinolytic-protease (Clp) system and how it regulates organelle proteostasis. Using null and conditional mutants, we demonstrate that the P. falciparum Clp protease (PfClpP) has robust enzymatic activity that is essential for apicoplast biogenesis. We developed a CRISPR/Cas9-based system to express catalytically dead PfClpP, which showed that PfClpP oligomerizes as a zymogen and is matured via transautocatalysis. The expression of both wild-type and mutant Clp chaperone (PfClpC) variants revealed a functional chaperone-protease interaction. Conditional mutants of the substrate-adaptor (PfClpS) demonstrated its essential function in plastid biogenesis. A combination of multiple affinity purification screens identified the Clp complex composition as well as putative Clp substrates. This comprehensive study reveals the molecular composition and interactions influencing the proteolytic function of the apicoplast Clp system and demonstrates its central role in the biogenesis of the plastid in malaria parasites.

    Original languageEnglish (US)
    Pages (from-to)13719-13729
    Number of pages11
    JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
    Volume117
    Issue number24
    DOIs
    StatePublished - Jun 16 2020

    Keywords

    • Clp protease
    • Clp proteins
    • Malaria
    • Plasmodium
    • Plastid

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • General

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