Biochemical characterization of Plasmodium falciparum Sir2, a NAD+-dependent deacetylase.

In Plasmodium falciparum, the causative agent of cerebral malaria, silent information regulator 2 (Sir2) has been implicated in pathogenesis through its role in var gene silencing. P. falciparum Sir2 (PfSir2) in addition to the catalytic core, has a 13 residue N-terminal and 4 residue C-terminal extension over the shorter Archaeoglobus fulgidus Sir2.