ArticlePLoS pathogens2020
3-Dimensional organization and dynamics of the microsporidian polar tube invasion machinery.
Article in PLoS pathogens, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers.
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Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed.
- Microsporidia: evolution, infection mechanisms and host impact.Nature reviews. Microbiology · 2026Review
- Ultrastructural insights into the polar tube invasion organelle from microsporidian parasites.Current opinion in microbiology · 2026Review
- Cryo-ET reveals the in situ architecture of the polar tube invasion apparatus from microsporidian parasites.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
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- Article
- Ultrastructural insights into the microsporidian infection apparatus reveal the kinetics and morphological transitions of polar tube and cargo during host cell invasion.PLoS biology · 2024Article
- Functional characterization of Nosema bombycis (microsporidia) trehalase 3.Parasitology research · 2023Article
- 3D reconstructions of parasite development and the intracellular niche of the microsporidian pathogen Encephalitozoon intestinalis.Nature communications · 2023Article
- Article
- The microsporidian polar tube: origin, structure, composition, function, and application.Parasites & vectors · 2023Review
- Germination of Microsporidian Spores: The Known and Unknown.Journal of fungi (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Identification and localization of polar tube proteins in the extruded polar tube of the microsporidian Anncaliia algerae.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Identification of Potential Druggable Targets and Structure-Based Virtual Screening for Drug-like Molecules against the Shrimp PathogenInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2023Article
- Diversity, Distribution, and Development of Hyperparasitic Microsporidia in Gregarines within One Super-Host.Microorganisms · 2023Review
- Waffle Method: A general and flexible approach for improving throughput in FIB-milling.Nature communications · 2022Article
- Current Therapy and Therapeutic Targets for Microsporidiosis.Frontiers in microbiology · 2022Review
- Factors That Determine Microsporidia Infection and Host Specificity.Experientia supplementum (2012) · 2022Review
- The Function and Structure of the Microsporidia Polar Tube.Experientia supplementum (2012) · 2022Article
- Article
- Von Willebrand Factor Facilitates Intravascular Dissemination of MicrosporidiaFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2021Article
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Microsporidia, a divergent group of single-celled eukaryotic parasites, harness a specialized harpoon-like invasion apparatus called the polar tube (PT) to gain entry into host cells. The PT is tightly coiled within the transmissible extracellular spore, and is about 20 times the length of the spore. Once triggered, the PT is rapidly ejected and is thought to penetrate the host cell, acting as a conduit for the transfer of infectious cargo into the host. The organization of this specialized infection apparatus in the spore, how it is deployed, and how the nucleus and other large cargo are transported through the narrow PT are not well understood. Here we use serial block-face scanning electron microscopy to reveal the 3-dimensional architecture of the PT and its relative spatial orientation to other organelles within the spore. Using high-speed optical microscopy, we also capture and quantify the entire PT germination process of three human-infecting microsporidian species in vitro: Anncaliia algerae, Encephalitozoon hellem and E. intestinalis. Our results show that the emerging PT experiences very high accelerating forces to reach velocities exceeding 300 μm⋅s-1, and that firing kinetics differ markedly between species. Live-cell imaging reveals that the nucleus, which is at least 7 times larger than the diameter of the PT, undergoes extreme deformation to fit through the narrow tube, and moves at speeds comparable to PT extension. Our study sheds new light on the 3-dimensional organization, dynamics, and mechanism of PT extrusion, and shows how infectious cargo moves through the tube to initiate infection.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.