Published in

Public Library of Science, PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 1(10), p. e0004312, 2016

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004312

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3D Architecture of the Trypanosoma brucei Flagella Connector, a Mobile Transmembrane Junction

This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

Cellular junctions are crucial for the formation of multicellular organisms, where they anchor cells to each other and/or supportive tissue and enable cell-to-cell communication. Some unicellular organisms, such as the parasitic protist Trypanosoma brucei, also have complex cellular junctions. The flagella connector (FC) is a three-layered transmembrane junction that moves with the growing tip of a new flagellum and attaches it to the side of the old flagellum. The FC moves via an unknown molecular mechanism, independent of new flagellum growth. Here we describe the detailed 3D architecture of the FC suggesting explanations for how it functions and its mechanism of motility.