Using Yeast to Find New Drugs for Parasites
Author Information
Author(s): Elizabeth Bilsland, Pınar Pir, Alex Gutteridge, Alexander Johns, Ross D. King, Stephen G. Oliver
Primary Institution: University of Cambridge
Hypothesis
Can engineered yeast strains effectively express anti-parasitic drug targets to facilitate drug screening?
Conclusion
Engineered yeast strains can be used to rapidly identify new anti-parasitic agents by expressing various drug targets.
Supporting Evidence
- Yeast strains expressing Plasmodium DHFRs were hypersensitive to pyrimethamine, validating the drug screening approach.
- The deletion of the PDR5 gene in yeast significantly increased sensitivity to pyrimethamine.
- Engineered yeast can express drug targets from multiple parasites, allowing for a versatile drug screening platform.
Takeaway
Scientists made special yeast that can help find new medicines to fight diseases caused by parasites. This yeast can show how well different drugs work.
Methodology
The study involved engineering yeast to express dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) from various parasites and testing their sensitivity to the drug pyrimethamine.
Limitations
The study primarily focused on a limited number of drug targets and may not encompass all potential anti-parasitic agents.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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