Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases
University of Georgia
Diego Huet works in molecular parasitology, focusing on the organellar biology of Toxoplasma gondii. In this mSphere of Influence article, he reflects on how the article “Efficient proximity labeling in living cells and organisms with turboID” (Branon et al., 2018) impacted his research and the strategies used to dissect inter-organellar interactions in T. gondii. Diego …
The production of energy in the form of ATP by the mitochondrial ATP synthase must be tightly controlled. One well-conserved form of regulation is mediated via ATPase inhibitory factor 1 (IF1), which governs ATP synthase activity and gene expression patterns through a cytoprotective process known as mitohormesis. In apicomplexans, the processes regulating ATP synthase activity …
Intracellular infection by a pathogen induces significant rewiring of host cell signaling and biological processes. Understanding how an intracellular pathogen such as Toxoplasma gondii modulates host cell metabolism with single-cell resolution has been challenged by the variability of infection within cultures and difficulties in separating host and parasite metabolic processes. A new study from Gallego-Lopez …
by Donna Huber From an early age, Diego Huet has been interested in the unusual and fascinating found in the natural world. His early encounters with animals, plants and insects nurtured his curiosity about nature. Their striking colors and sometimes strange shapes drew his interest, and even today he continues to capture them through macro photography. …
Coiled-coil-helix-coiled-coil-helix (CHCH) domains consist of two pairs of cysteine residues that are oxidized to form disulfide bonds upon mitochondrial import. Proteins containing these domains play important roles in mitochondrial ultrastructure and in the biogenesis, function, and stability of electron transport chain complexes. Interestingly, recent investigations of the Toxoplasma gondii ATP synthase identified subunits containing CHCH domains. As …
Apicomplexan parasites are a group of protists that cause disease in humans and include pathogens like Plasmodium spp., the causative agent of malaria, and Toxoplasma gondii, the etiological agent of toxoplasmosis and one of the most ubiquitous human parasites in the world. Membrane contact sites (MCSs) are widespread structures within eukaryotic cells but their …
