Mitochondrial genome structure of the phylum Apicomplexa

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  • Hikosaka Kenji
    Department of Infection and Host Defense, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Teikyo University School of Medicine
  • Tanabe Kazuyuki
    Department of Molecular Protozoology, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University
  • Kita Kiyoshi
    Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nagasaki University

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Other Title
  • アピコンプレクサ門のミトコンドリアゲノム構造
  • アピコンプレクサモン ノ ミトコンドリアゲノム コウゾウ

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Mitochondria are ubiquitous organelles in all eukaryotes that are essential for a range of cellular processes and cellular signaling. Nearly all mitochondria have their own DNA or mitochondrial genome, which varies considerably in size, structure and organization. The phylum Apicomplexa includes a variety of unicellular eukaryotes, some of which are parasites of clinical or economic importance. Recent studies have demonstrated that apicomplexan mitochondrial genomes, which include the smallest 6-kb genome of the malaria parasites, exhibit remarkably diverse structures. Apicomplexan parasites are interesting model organisms in order to understand the evolution of mitochondrial genomes. This review summarizes the structure of apicomplexan mitochondrial genomes and highlights the unique features and the evolution of the mitochondrial genome.

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