PCR1

PCR1 is a component of the preconoidal rings (PCRs) at the apical tip of Toxoplasma gondii, cytoskeletal structures that serve as a hub concentrating glideosome components including Formin1 (PMID:36109645). Through this localization the PCRs, and PCR1 as one of their constituents, link the apical cytoskeleton to the actomyosin machinery underlying parasite motility (PMID:36109645). Beyond this ultrastructural localization within the PCR, no further mechanistic detail about PCR1 itself has been characterized in the available corpus.

1. 2022 Medium

   Whether the preconoidal rings have a defined molecular composition and functional role was unresolved; identifying PCR1 as a PCR component that co-organizes glideosome factors established the PCR as an apical hub coupling the cytoskeleton to the motility machinery.

   Evidence Ultrastructure expansion microscopy (UExM) localizing PCR1 and glideosome components including Formin1 in Toxoplasma gondii

   PMID:36109645

   Open questions at the time

   • The specific molecular function of PCR1 within the PCR is not defined
   • Direct binding partners and the mechanism by which PCR1 recruits or organizes glideosome components are not established
   • No loss-of-function phenotype for PCR1 itself is characterized