Sirtuins as emerging anti-parasitic targets

Silent information regulator 2 (Sir2) enzymes or sirtuins are a family of NAD(+)-dependent protein N-epsilon-acetyl-lysine (AcK) deacetylases. Sirtuins are also evolutionarily conserved proteins that are present in all kingdoms of life ranging from bacteria to humans. Interestingly, it was recently found that the sirtuins found in various human parasites (especially the Plasmodium, Trypanosoma, and Leishmania species) were pro-survival for the parasites under various conditions. Therefore, these parasitic sirtuins have emerged as novel anti-parasitic therapeutic targets. This article reviews the currently available structural, biochemical, pharmacological, and medicinal chemistry studies on these enzymes, and discusses the perspectives of selectively targeting the parasitic sirtuins as a novel therapeutic strategy for the human parasitic diseases. (C) 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.