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Cryptosporidium Metabolism

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Cryptosporidium: parasite and disease

Abstract

Rather than the presence of unique metabolic pathways, it is the absence of many pathways that characterizes the metabolism of Cryptosporidium. In fact, this genus of parasites has lost its ability of synthesizing de novo virtually all nutrients such as amino acids, nucleotides and fatty acids, thus relying on a large number of transporters to scavenge nutrients from the host. Members of this genus lack an apicoplast and associated pathways that are present in other apicomplexans. They lack cytochrome-based respiration, and rely mainly on glycolysis for energy production. Core metabolic pathways are highly streamlined, and redundancy is rare. These features make Cryptosporidium different from other apicomplexans. This chapter summarizes these features based on the analysis of genome sequences and published biochemical data in the context of drug targets and drug development.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Dr. J. M. Fritzler at Weber State University and Dr. S. D. Rider at Wright State University for their critical reading of the manuscript. Studies derived from the author’s laboratory have been mainly supported by grants from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health.

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  1. Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843-4467, USA

    Guan Zhu & Fengguang Guo

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  1. Guan Zhu
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  2. Fengguang Guo
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Correspondence to Guan Zhu .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immunomediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy

    Simone M. Cacciò

  2. Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine Division of Infectious Diseases, North Grafton, Massachusetts, USA

    Giovanni Widmer

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Zhu, G., Guo, F. (2014). Cryptosporidium Metabolism. In: Cacciò, S., Widmer, G. (eds) Cryptosporidium: parasite and disease. Springer, Vienna. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7091-1562-6_8

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