Neglected tropical diseases such as leishmaniasis constitute a significant health concern worldwide. Global warming is projected to modify these diseases' transmission periods and geographic ranges, spreading them to naive regions and populations. The severity of these diseases is aggravated as current treatments have become less effective or have severe side effects. Acidocalcisome, an organelle shared by protist parasites, plays an essential role in their infectivity and adaptation to the host environment. My research aims to decipher the molecular mechanism of proteins essential for phosphate homeostasis in this organelle and explore the proteins as potential targets for drug design. I will use x-ray crystallography and cryo-EM to asses the structures of acidocalcisome proteins and perform functional studies both in vitro and in vivo. This work can help further scientific knowledge and also help develop drug candidates for parasitic diseases like sleeping sickness and leishmaniasis.

2023

2027