Ciliate pheromone structures and activity: a review

As in animals and other multicellular organisms, protozoan ciliates communicate via diffusible signalling pheromones. These pheromones have been identified in the culture supernatant of various species. However, their isolation and definitive structural characterization have been achieved only in sp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European zoological journal 2015-01, Vol.82 (1), p.3-14
Main Authors: Luporini, P, Alimenti, C, Vallesi, A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
amino acids
animals
autocrine signaling
Bacteriology
Blepharisma
Ciliophora
Euplotes
glycoproteins
loci
NMR
Nuclear magnetic resonance
nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy
Pheromones
protist ciliates
signal proteins
Water-borne pheromones
zoology
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Summary:As in animals and other multicellular organisms, protozoan ciliates communicate via diffusible signalling pheromones. These pheromones have been identified in the culture supernatant of various species. However, their isolation and definitive structural characterization have been achieved only in species of Blepharisma and Euplotes . With the exception of the two B. japonicum pheromones represented by a tryptophan-related molecule and a glycoprotein, all the other pheromones isolated from Euplotes species are proteins that vary in extension between 38 and 109 amino acids. They form species-specific families of structurally homologous members, in full accord with their multi-allelic determination at an apparently single genetic locus. The determination of the Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) solution structures of E. raikovi and E. nobilii pheromones has provided direct evidence that, although structurally unique, Euplotes pheromones adopt a common, species-specific three-helix folding. This close structural homology among members of the same family well accounts for the pheromone capacity to compete with one another in cell receptor binding reactions and elicit context-dependent, autocrine (growth-promoting) or paracrine (mating-inducing) cell responses.
ISSN:1748-5851
1125-0003
2475-0255
1748-5851
2475-0263
DOI:10.1080/11250003.2014.976282