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In eukaryotic cells, mitochondria play a key role in apoptosis; however, ancestral eukaryotic cells such as Giardia lamblia only possess a mitochondrial remnant, the mitosome. Interestingly, this protozoan still undergoes an apoptosis‐like process; therefore, we focused primarily on the search for the mitochondria‐independent executor DNase. Here, we identified, cloned, expressed, and characterized the caspase‐activated DNase (CAD) from Giardia lamblia . Using a commercial polyclonal antibody that recognizes mouse, rat, and human caspase‐activated DNase (hCAD), we developed an immunoproteomic analysis using a crude extract of curcumin‐treated Giardia lamblia trophozoites (CEGl) and detected a spot of 42 kDa and pI 9.4, similar to hCAD and sequenced by LC‐MS. The proteomic profile matched a novel protein of 383 residues, with a predicted 42 kDa, pI 9.4, a CIDE‐N domain, and putative H‐K‐H catalytic motif. Afterward, we cloned the full‐length gene (GenBank: ON707040), expressed it, and purified it as a 6‐His tag‐recombinant protein in Escherichia coli , which was also recognized by commercial anti‐CAD. In conclusion, genetic, proteomic, and structural analyses showed that the identified gCAD is an orthologous protein of hCAD, and its DNase role in the apoptosis‐like signaling pathway of Giardia lamblia can be further analyzed.