Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 20, 2026

Profiling of Methyltransferases and Other S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine-binding Proteins by Capture Compound Mass Spectrometry (CCMS)
17:12

Profiling of Methyltransferases and Other S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine-binding Proteins by Capture Compound Mass Spectrometry (CCMS)

Published on: December 20, 2010

Characterization of S-adenosylmethionine synthetase in Cryptosporidium parvum (Apicomplexa)

Jan Slapeta1, Frantisek Stejskal, Janet S Keithly

  • 1Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, P.O. Box 22002, Albany, NY 12201-2002, USA.

FEMS Microbiology Letters
|September 3, 2003
PubMed

Insights

The Cryptosporidium parvum S-adenosylmethionine synthetase (CpSAMS) gene was characterized and found to be differentially expressed during the parasite's life cycle. This finding offers potential targets for controlling cryptosporidiosis.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular biology
  • Parasitology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Cryptosporidium parvum causes diarrhea in humans and animals.
  • Understanding parasite gene expression is crucial for developing treatments.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To characterize the S-adenosylmethionine synthetase gene (CpSAMS) from Cryptosporidium parvum.
  • To investigate the expression pattern of CpSAMS during the parasite's life cycle.

Main Methods:

  • Gene cloning and sequencing of CpSAMS.
  • Expression of recombinant CpSAMS in Escherichia coli.
  • Enzyme activity assays.
  • Semi-quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) on infected HCT-8 cells.

Main Results:

  • CpSAMS is a single-copy, intronless, AT-rich gene encoding a 406-amino acid protein.
  • Recombinant CpSAMS showed enzymatic activity inhibited by cycloleucine.
  • CpSAMS exhibited differential expression during the 72-hour life cycle of C. parvum in HCT-8 cells.

Conclusions:

  • The CpSAMS gene has been successfully cloned and characterized.
  • Differential expression suggests a role for CpSAMS in C. parvum's life cycle.
  • CpSAMS represents a potential target for anti-cryptosporidial drug development.

More Related Videos

In Vitro Assay to Measure Phosphatidylethanolamine Methyltransferase Activity09:33

In Vitro Assay to Measure Phosphatidylethanolamine Methyltransferase Activity

Published on: January 5, 2016

Biochemical and Structural Characterization of the Carbohydrate Transport Substrate-binding-protein SP009208:53

Biochemical and Structural Characterization of the Carbohydrate Transport Substrate-binding-protein SP0092

Published on: October 2, 2017

Related Concept Videos

ATP Synthase: Mechanism01:48

ATP Synthase: Mechanism

In animals, the mitochondrial F1F0 ATP synthase is the key protein that synthesizes ATP molecules through a complex catalytic mechanism. While the nuclear genome encodes the majority of ATP synthase subunits, the mitochondrial genome encodes some of the enzyme's most critical components. The formation of this multi-subunit enzyme is a complex multi-step process regulated at the level of transcription, translation, and assembly. Defects in one or more of these steps can result in decreased ATP...
Fungal Phylum Microsporidia01:28

Fungal Phylum Microsporidia

Microsporidia are a group of obligate intracellular fungi that were initially classified as protists but were later reclassified based on phylogenetic, molecular, and structural evidence linking them to the Chytridiomycota. These unicellular, non-motile organisms are highly specialized parasites that infect a wide range of animal hosts, including humans. They have evolved extensive genomic and metabolic reductions, making them highly dependent on their hosts for survival.Morphology and Genomic...
Antiprotozoal Agents01:21

Antiprotozoal Agents

Leishmaniasis is a widespread parasitic disease caused by several Leishmania species. It affects millions of people each year and remains a major public health problem in endemic regions. First-line treatment relies on pentavalent antimonials, including meglumine antimoniate and sodium stibogluconate. Even so, how these drugs work has not been fully clear, especially their interaction with parasite-specific biochemical pathways. One key target is trypanothione reductase (TR), an enzyme that...
Allosteric Proteins-ATCase01:19

Allosteric Proteins-ATCase

Binding sites linkages can regulate a protein's function.  For example, enzyme activity is often regulated through a feedback mechanism where the end product of the biochemical process serves as an inhibitor.
Aspartate transcarbamoylase (ATCase) is a cytosolic enzyme that catalyzes the condensation of L-aspartate and carbamoyl phosphate to  N-carbamoyl-L-aspartate. This reaction is the first step in pyrimidine biosynthesis. UTP and CTP, the end products of the pyrimidine synthesis pathway,...