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Functional and Computational Genomics Reveal Unprecedented Flexibility in Stage-Specific Toxoplasma Metabolism
Related concepts (32)
Fatty acid synthase
Fatty acid synthase (FAS) is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the FASN gene. Fatty acid synthase is a multi-enzyme protein that catalyzes fatty acid synthesis. It is not a single enzyme but a whole enzymatic system composed of two identical 272 kDa multifunctional polypeptides, in which substrates are handed from one functional domain to the next. Its main function is to catalyze the synthesis of palmitate (C16:0, a long-chain saturated fatty acid) from acetyl-CoA and malonyl-CoA, in the presence of NADPH.
Fatty acid metabolism
Fatty acid metabolism consists of various metabolic processes involving or closely related to fatty acids, a family of molecules classified within the lipid macronutrient category. These processes can mainly be divided into (1) catabolic processes that generate energy and (2) anabolic processes where they serve as building blocks for other compounds. In catabolism, fatty acids are metabolized to produce energy, mainly in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP).
Adenine
Adenine (ˈædᵻnᵻn) (symbol A or Ade) is a purine nucleobase. It is one of the four nucleobases in the nucleic acids of DNA, the other three being guanine (G), cytosine (C), and thymine (T). Adenine derivatives have various roles in biochemistry including cellular respiration, in the form of both the energy-rich adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and the cofactors nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD), flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and Coenzyme A. It also has functions in protein synthesis and as a chemical component of DNA and RNA.
Morpholino
A Morpholino, also known as a Morpholino oligomer and as a phosphorodiamidate Morpholino oligomer (PMO), is a type of oligomer molecule (colloquially, an oligo) used in molecular biology to modify gene expression. Its molecular structure contains DNA bases attached to a backbone of methylenemorpholine rings linked through phosphorodiamidate groups. Morpholinos block access of other molecules to small (~25 base) specific sequences of the base-pairing surfaces of ribonucleic acid (RNA).
Metabolic pathway
In biochemistry, a metabolic pathway is a linked series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell. The reactants, products, and intermediates of an enzymatic reaction are known as metabolites, which are modified by a sequence of chemical reactions catalyzed by enzymes. In most cases of a metabolic pathway, the product of one enzyme acts as the substrate for the next. However, side products are considered waste and removed from the cell. These enzymes often require dietary minerals, vitamins, and other cofactors to function.
Metabolic network
A metabolic network is the complete set of metabolic and physical processes that determine the physiological and biochemical properties of a cell. As such, these networks comprise the chemical reactions of metabolism, the metabolic pathways, as well as the regulatory interactions that guide these reactions. With the sequencing of complete genomes, it is now possible to reconstruct the network of biochemical reactions in many organisms, from bacteria to human.
Short-chain fatty acid
Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are fatty acids of two to six carbon atoms. The SCFAs lower limit is interpreted differently, either with 1, 2, 3 or 4 carbon atoms. Derived from intestinal microbial fermentation of indigestible foods, SCFAs in human gut are acetic, propionic, and butyric acid. They are the main energy source of colonocytes, making them crucial to gastrointestinal health. SCFAs all possess varying degrees of water solubility, which distinguishes them from longer chain fatty acids that are immiscible.
Interactome
In molecular biology, an interactome is the whole set of molecular interactions in a particular cell. The term specifically refers to physical interactions among molecules (such as those among proteins, also known as protein–protein interactions, PPIs; or between small molecules and proteins) but can also describe sets of indirect interactions among genes (genetic interactions). The word "interactome" was originally coined in 1999 by a group of French scientists headed by Bernard Jacq.
Omics
The branches of science known informally as omics are various disciplines in biology whose names end in the suffix -omics, such as genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, metagenomics, phenomics and transcriptomics. Omics aims at the collective characterization and quantification of pools of biological molecules that translate into the structure, function, and dynamics of an organism or organisms. The related suffix -ome is used to address the objects of study of such fields, such as the genome, proteome or metabolome respectively.
Apicomplexan life cycle
Apicomplexans, a group of intracellular parasites, have life cycle stages that allow them to survive the wide variety of environments they are exposed to during their complex life cycle. Each stage in the life cycle of an apicomplexan organism is typified by a cellular variety with a distinct morphology and biochemistry. Not all apicomplexa develop all the following cellular varieties and division methods. This presentation is intended as an outline of a hypothetical generalised apicomplexan organism.