Proteomics Maps Eye-Infecting Acanthamoeba Mitochondria Across Oxygen Levels
A new catalog of 1,122 mitochondrial proteins reveals how Acanthamoeba adapts to oxygen loss—and may highlight possible targets for treating sight-threatening infections. The post Proteomics Maps Eye-Infecting Acanthamoeba Mitochondria Across Oxygen Levels appeared first on GEN - Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News .
Starve Acanthamoeba of oxygen, and its mitochondria retool their energy-producing machinery, generating hydrogen gas to survive. This amoeba, found in water, soil, and air, can infect the cornea, causing sight-threatening keratitis. This metabolic flexibility aids its persistence in the eye. The pathogen can also form a drug-resistant cyst, complicating treatment.
Researchers now have a tool to probe the machinery behind its survival by mapping the organism’s mitochondrial proteins. With this high-confidence inventory, they highlight potential therapeutic vulnerabilities. The study, published in Cell, improves the organism's nuclear genome annotation and reveals the amoeba’s metabolic flexibility.
This catalog contains 1,122 proteins, including 381 unique to Acanthamoeba. Oxygen extensively rewires the amoeba’s bioenergetic machinery, enabling hydrogen gas production in low-oxygen conditions. This study lays a foundation for more selective treatments against this infection.
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