The P-type ATPase conferences have been held roughly every three years since 1973 (in New York). This will be the first time that the conference will be held in Australia. Because of the conference’s location in the tropics, it is planned to have a special focus on tropical medicine, in particular ATPases associate with malaria.

What are P-Type ATPases?

P-type ATPases play a crucial role in creating ion gradients essential for the proper functioning of animal cells and various biological processes. The first to be discovered was the Na⁺, K⁺-ATPase, also known as the sodium, potassium pump, for which Jens Christian Skou was awarded the 1997 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Recent advancements in structural biology have accelerated the determination of atomic level structures of these ATPases but have also revealed the significance of intrinsically disordered protein regions.

Recent research focusses on the regulation mechanisms and diseases associated with mutations in ion pumps. Notably, upcoming symposia will discuss hereditary diseases caused by ATP1A3 gene mutations and the potential of a Na⁺-ATPase in the malaria parasite, pfATP4 Plasmodium falciparum, as a molecular target for malaria treatment.