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Encyclopedia of Malaria pp 1–9Cite as

Merozoite Linear Motor

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Synonyms

Actin-myosin motor; Erythrocyte invasion; Glideosome; Gliding motility; Merozoite movement

Definition

In living things movement is generated by a range of molecular motors that include flagella/cilia, kinesin and dynein movement on microtubules, and actomyosin-based systems. Malaria parasites of the genus Plasmodiumand other members of the Apicomplexa phylum use an actomyosin motor for motility and invasion of host cells and tissues. The malaria parasite has both intracellular and extracellular stages during its life cycle. Some of these extracellular forms, known as zoites, are polarized cells specially adapted for migration through and invasion of host cells. The zoite stages all share a common structure, including a variety of secretory organelles at the apical end of the cell, as well as a distinctive double-membrane structure called the inner membrane complex (IMC) that is located immediately below the cell plasmalemma. These apical organelles and the IMC are key to...

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Abbreviations

CTD:

C-terminal domain

GAP:

Glideosome-associated protein

IMC:

Inner membrane complex

myoA:

Myosin A

MTIP:

Myosin A tail domain interacting protein

TRAP:

Thrombospondin-related anonymous protein

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Parasitology, MRC National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London, NW7 1AA, UK

    Judith L. Green, Robert W. Moon & Anthony A. Holder

Authors
  1. Judith L. Green
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  2. Robert W. Moon
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  3. Anthony A. Holder
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Judith L. Green .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Heswall, United Kingdom

    Marcel Hommel

  2. Institut für Tropenmedizin, Universität Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany

    Peter G. Kremsner

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Green, J.L., Moon, R.W., Holder, A.A. (2013). Merozoite Linear Motor. In: Hommel, M., Kremsner, P. (eds) Encyclopedia of Malaria. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8757-9_57-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8757-9_57-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-8757-9

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