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The Toxoplasma gondii parasitophorous vacuole membrane: transactions across the border.

Author
Abstract
:

The obligate intracellular protozoan Toxoplasma gondii establishes its replication permissive niche within the infected host cell. This niche, the parasitophorous vacuole (PV), is delimited from the host cell cytoplasm by the PV membrane (PVM). In this chapter we highlight the roles of the PVM in the remodeling of host cell architecture, nutrient acquisition, the manipulation of signaling, and touch upon the potential roles in the parasite developmental cycle. We further present the PVM as a unique and dynamic "organelle" found only within the infected cell where it is established outside the parent organism. Despite its importance little is known about the biology of the PVM. There has, however, been a recent renewal of interest in the PVM, the study of which has become more tractable with the application of both classical approaches as well as genomic and proteomic analyses. In this review we discuss the diverse activities associated with the PVM and present pressing questions that remain to be elucidated regarding this enigmatic organelle.

Year of Publication
:
1969
Journal
:
The Journal of eukaryotic microbiology
Volume
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54
Issue
:
1
Number of Pages
:
25-8
Date Published
:
1969
ISSN Number
:
1066-5234
URL
:
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1550-7408.2006.00230.x
DOI
:
10.1111/j.1550-7408.2006.00230.x
Short Title
:
J Eukaryot Microbiol
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