Congopain from Trypanosoma congolense: Drug Target and Vaccine Candidate
-
Gilles Lalmanach
Abstract
Trypanosomes are the etiological agents of human sleeping sickness and livestock trypanosomosis (nagana), which are major diseases in Africa. Their cysteine proteases (CPs), which are members of the papain family, are expressed during the infective stages of the parasites life cycle. They are suspected to act as pathogenic factors in the mammalian host, where they also trigger prominent immune responses. Trypanosoma congolense, a major pathogenic species in livestock, possesses at least two families of closely related CPs, named CP1 and CP2. Congopain, a CP2-type of enzyme, shares structural and functional resemblances with cruzipain from T. cruzi and with mammalian cathepsin L. Like CPs from other Trypanosomatids, congopain might be an attractive target for trypanocidal drugs. Here we summarise the current knowledge in the two main areas of research on congopain: first, the biochemical properties of congopain were characterised and its substrate specificity was determined, as a first step towards drug design; second, the possibility was being explored that inhibition of congopain by hostspecific antibodies may mitigate the pathology associated with trypanosome infection.
Copyright © 2002 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG
Articles in the same Issue
- Nobuhiko Katunuma: An Outstanding Scientific and Professional Career of a Warm-Hearted Person. Reflections on the Occasion of his 75th Birthday
- Structural and Functional Diversity of Connexin Genes in the Mouse and Human Genome
- Congopain from Trypanosoma congolense: Drug Target and Vaccine Candidate
- Biosynthesis of Lysosomal Proteinases in Health and Disease
- Calpain Function in the Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells
- Ku Antigen Supports Termination of Mammalian rDNA Replication by Transcription Termination Factor TTF-I
- Thyroid Stimulating Hormone Upregulates Secretion of Cathepsin B from Thyroid Epithelial Cells
- Selective Release of Calpain Produced αII-Spectrin (α-Fodrin) Breakdown Products by Acute Neuronal Cell Death
- Altered Storage of Proteases in Mast Cells from Mice Lacking Heparin: A Possible Role for Heparin Carboxypeptidase A Processing
- Clustering-Induced Signaling of CEACAM1 in PC12 Cells
- Spin Adducts of Superoxide, Alkoxyl, and Lipid-Derived Radicals with EMPO and Its Derivatives
- Glutathione S-Transferase of the Malarial Parasite Plasmodium falciparum: Characterization of a Potential Drug Target
- Analysis of the Structural Determinants for RNA Binding of the Human Protein AUF1/hnRNP D
- Effect of Cysteine Proteinase Inhibitors on Murine B16 Melanoma Cell Invasion in vitro
- Stage-Specific Antimalarial Activity of Cysteine Protease Inhibitors
- Epoxysuccinyl Peptide-Derived Cathepsin B Inhibitors: Modulating Membrane Permeability by Conjugation with the C-Terminal Heptapeptide Segment of Penetratin
- Design of Inhibitors for Human Tissue Kallikrein Using Non-Natural Aromatic and Basic Amino Acids
- Amyloid Fibril Formation by Human Stefin B in vitro: Immunogold Labelling and Comparison to Stefin A
- Lysosomal Peptidases and Glycosidases in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Articles in the same Issue
- Nobuhiko Katunuma: An Outstanding Scientific and Professional Career of a Warm-Hearted Person. Reflections on the Occasion of his 75th Birthday
- Structural and Functional Diversity of Connexin Genes in the Mouse and Human Genome
- Congopain from Trypanosoma congolense: Drug Target and Vaccine Candidate
- Biosynthesis of Lysosomal Proteinases in Health and Disease
- Calpain Function in the Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells
- Ku Antigen Supports Termination of Mammalian rDNA Replication by Transcription Termination Factor TTF-I
- Thyroid Stimulating Hormone Upregulates Secretion of Cathepsin B from Thyroid Epithelial Cells
- Selective Release of Calpain Produced αII-Spectrin (α-Fodrin) Breakdown Products by Acute Neuronal Cell Death
- Altered Storage of Proteases in Mast Cells from Mice Lacking Heparin: A Possible Role for Heparin Carboxypeptidase A Processing
- Clustering-Induced Signaling of CEACAM1 in PC12 Cells
- Spin Adducts of Superoxide, Alkoxyl, and Lipid-Derived Radicals with EMPO and Its Derivatives
- Glutathione S-Transferase of the Malarial Parasite Plasmodium falciparum: Characterization of a Potential Drug Target
- Analysis of the Structural Determinants for RNA Binding of the Human Protein AUF1/hnRNP D
- Effect of Cysteine Proteinase Inhibitors on Murine B16 Melanoma Cell Invasion in vitro
- Stage-Specific Antimalarial Activity of Cysteine Protease Inhibitors
- Epoxysuccinyl Peptide-Derived Cathepsin B Inhibitors: Modulating Membrane Permeability by Conjugation with the C-Terminal Heptapeptide Segment of Penetratin
- Design of Inhibitors for Human Tissue Kallikrein Using Non-Natural Aromatic and Basic Amino Acids
- Amyloid Fibril Formation by Human Stefin B in vitro: Immunogold Labelling and Comparison to Stefin A
- Lysosomal Peptidases and Glycosidases in Rheumatoid Arthritis
