The promastigote surface protease of Leishmania.

The infective forms o f several protozoan parasites are covered with a limited number o f major surface proteins. In this respect, Leishmania is no exception, and recent investigations have demonstrated on promostigotes the presence o f a single surface glycoprotein. In contrast to the major surface proteins o f other protozoans which have no known enzymatic activities, the surface protein of Leishmania. is a protease which is active on living cells. In this review, Clement Bordier presents the current structural, functional and immunological information concerning this intriguing and potentially important enzyme.