Zoological Institute, Zoophysiology, University of Kiel, Olshausenstrasse 40, 24098, Kiel, Germany,
Appl Microbiol Biotechnol. 2014 May;98(10):4347-53. doi: 10.1007/s00253-014-5673-z. Epub 2014 Mar 28.
Some amoeboid protozoans are facultative or obligate parasites in humans and bear an enormous cytotoxic potential that can result in severe destruction of host tissues and fatal diseases. Pathogenic amoebae produce soluble pore-forming polypeptides that bind to prokaryotic and eukaryotic target cell membranes and generate pores upon insertion and oligomerization. This review summerizes the current knowledge of such small protein toxins from amoebae, compares them with related proteins from other species, focuses on their three-dimensional structures, and gives insights into divergent activation mechanisms. The potential use of pore-forming toxins in biotechnology will be briefly outlined.
一些变形虫原生动物是人类中兼性或专性寄生虫，具有巨大的细胞毒性潜力，可导致宿主组织严重破坏和致命疾病。致病性变形虫产生可溶性形成孔的多肽，与原核和真核靶细胞膜结合，并在插入和寡聚化时产生孔。本文综述了来自变形虫的此类小蛋白毒素的现有知识，将它们与来自其他物种的相关蛋白进行了比较，重点介绍了它们的三维结构，并深入了解了不同的激活机制。还简要概述了形成孔毒素在生物技术中的潜在用途。
