The occurrence of glycosomes (microbodies) in the promastigote stage of four major Leishmania species.

Evidence is presented for the occurrence of glycosomes (organelles resembling peroxisomes) in four major species of Leishmania (viz. L. major, L.m. mexicana, L. b. braziliensis and L. donovani), based on latency as well as differential and isopycnic centrifugation studies. The enzymes involved in glycolysis; (hexokinase, phosphoglucose isomerase, phosphofructokinase, fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase, triosephosphate isomerase, glyceraldehyde-phosphate dehydrogenase and phosphoglycerate kinase); glycerol metabolism (sn-glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and glycerol kinase); carbon dioxide fixation (phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase and possibly malate dehydrogenase); together with an enzyme involved in the beta-oxidation of fatty acids (3-beta-hydroxybutyryl coenzyme A dehydrogenase); a key enzyme in the synthesis of ether lipids (dihydroxyacetone phosphate acyltransferase) as well as the ADP utilising enzyme adenylate kinase, were all found associated, at least in part, with a subcellular organelle which had a buoyant density in sucrose gradients of 1.21 to 1.24 g cm-3. Little variance in enzyme composition was found between the different species of Leishmania or in comparison with other members of the Trypanosomatidae, supporting the unifying principle that glycosomes are a unique characteristic of this family. The occurrence of important catabolic, anabolic and anaplerotic pathways in the glycosomes of Leishmania renders them prime targets for chemotherapy.