Deep origin of plastid/parasite ATP/ADP translocases

Membrane proteins that transport ATP and ADP have been identified in mitochondria, plastids, and obligate intracellular parasites. The mitochondrial ATP/ADP transporters are derived from a broad-specificity transport family of eukaryotic origin, whereas the origin of the plastid/parasite ATP/ADP translocase is more elusive. Here we present the sequences of five genes coding for ATP/ADP translocases from four species of Rickettsia. The results are consistent with an early duplication and divergence of the five ATP/ADP translocases within the rickettsial lineage. A comparison of the phylogenetic depths of the mitochondrial and the plastid/parasite ATP/ADP translocases indicates a deep origin for both transporters. The results provide no evidence for a recent acquisition of the ATP/ADP transporters in Rickettsia via horizontal gene transfer, as previously suggested. A possible function of the two types of ATP/ADP translocases was to allow switches between glycolysis and aerobic respiration in the early eukaryotic cell and its endosymbiont.