Bioinformatics analysis of the presence of Ca2+ channels of Acanthamoeba castellanii: Bioinformatics analysis

Mehmet	 AYKUR

doi:10.5281/zenodo.11455721

Authors

Mehmet AYKUR Department of Parasitology, Tokat Gaziosmanpaşa University, Faculty of Medicine, Tokat, Türkiye Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6100-1037

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.11455721

Keywords:

Bioinformatics tools, Acanthamoeba castellanii, Ca2+ channels, new therapeutic targets

Abstract

The free-living amoeba (FLA) belonging to the genus Acanthamoeba is the most widespread protozoan in the environment, found in natural and man-made environments. Acanthamoeba is an opportunistic protist capable of causing granulomatous amebic encephalitis (GAE), a fatal disease of the central nervous system (CNS), and Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK), a painful, progressive, and sight-threatening infection. A single drug that can simultaneously eliminate both trophozoite and cystic forms of the parasite is currently unavailable. Bioinformatics research has aimed to reveal the presence of new therapeutic targets and pathways in the treatment of Acanthamoeba.

Calcium (Ca²⁺) channels regulate many vital functions within cells. Ca²⁺influx mediates the regulation of physiological signaling pathways in parasites. Calcium channels in Acanthamoeba allow the intracellular Ca²⁺ stores to be refilled following intracellular Ca²⁺ release. It is also well known that the role of calcium in the activation of some anti-parasitic drugs is very important. The search for protein sequence homology between two-pore calcium channel protein 1 (TPC-1), TPC-2, and calmodulin was done by searching the Acanthamoeba Neff strain protein databases at NCBI and amoebadb.org by using BLASTp search. The BLASTp alignment option was selected to show similarities between the proteins of both species.

In conclusion, it may be an option for a narrow treatment approach for GAE and AK caused by Acanthamoeba species; therefore, the discovery of calcium channels (TPC-1, TPC-2, and Calmodulin) in Acanthamoeba could prove to be a potential therapeutic target in the future.

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