Plasmodium falciparum Apicomplexan-Specific Glucosamine-6-Phosphate N -Acetyltransferase Is Key for Amino Sugar Metabolism and Asexual Blood Stage Development

Abstract

Apicomplexan parasites cause a major burden on global health and economy. The absence of treatments, the emergence of resistances against available therapies, and the parasite’s ability to manipulate host cells and evade immune systems highlight the urgent need to characterize new drug targets to treat infections caused by these parasites. We demonstrate that glucosamine-6-phosphate N -acetyltransferase (GNA1), required for the biosynthesis of UDP- N -acetylglucosamine (UDP-GlcNAc), is essential for P. falciparum asexual blood stage development and that the disruption of the gene encoding this enzyme quickly causes the death of the parasite within a life cycle. The high-resolution crystal structure of the GNA1 ortholog from the apicomplexan parasite C. parvum , used here as a surrogate, highlights significant differences from human GNA1. These divergences can be exploited for the design of specific inhibitors against the malaria parasite.