Acta Veterinaria et Zootechnica Sinica ›› 2024, Vol. 55 ›› Issue (9): 3824-3832.doi: 10.11843/j.issn.0366-6964.2024.09.008

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Research Progress of Toxoplasma gondii AP2 Family

Xu GUO, Xiaoxiao CHEN, Yiming CHI, Wenyu MA, Mengze DU, Jian AN, Qiuming LI*(), Deqi YIN*()   

  1. College of Animal Science and Technology, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing 102206, China
  • Received:2023-12-07 Online:2024-09-23 Published:2024-09-27
  • Contact: Qiuming LI, Deqi YIN E-mail:liqiuming007@126.com;yindeqi1992@163.com

Abstract:

Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular parasitic protozoan belonging to the phylum Apicomplexa, with a complex life cycle involving multiple hosts and stages. T. gondii has a sexual stage restricted to felid species, while the asexual stage occurs in most warm-blooded animals including humans. About one-third of the world's population is infected with toxoplasmosis, and it can also cause serious economic losses in the livestock industry. T. gondii has a sophisticated gene regulatory network that enables it to timely transcribe its own genes as it adapts to changes in the external environment during specific stages. However, little is known about its potential transcriptional regulatory mechanisms. It has been found that specific transcription factors (TFs) play an important role in eukaryotic transcriptional regulation, especially the apetala 2 (AP2) family of transcription factors, which are involved in T. gondii gene expression during different stages. These factors play a crucial role in the growth and development of parasites. This article reviews the research progress of the Apicomplexan AP2 (ApiAP2) family of proteins in T. gondii, combining recent research results, in order to lay a foundation for further study of the biological characteristics of T. gondii.

Key words: Toxoplasma gondii, specific transcription factors, gene, cyst

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