malaria
Research ArticleClustering and Erratic Movement Patterns of Syringe-Injected versus Mosquito-Inoculated Malaria Sporozoites Underlie Decreased InfectivityMalaria still causes a major burden on global health and the economy. The efficacy of live, attenuated malaria sporozoites as vaccine candidates critically depends on their ability to migrate to and infect the host liver.
Research ArticleAdditional Feeding Reveals Differences in Immune Recognition and Growth of Plasmodium Parasites in the Mosquito HostMosquitoes must blood feed multiple times to acquire and transmit malaria. However, the impact of an additional mosquito blood meal following malaria parasite infection has not been closely examined.
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyInvestigation of Heterochromatin Protein 1 Function in the Malaria Parasite Plasmodium falciparum Using a Conditional Domain Deletion and Swapping ApproachMalaria is caused by unicellular Plasmodium species parasites that repeatedly invade and replicate inside red blood cells. Some blood-stage parasites exit the cell cycle and differentiate into gametocytes that are essential for malaria transmission via the mosquito vector.
Observation | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Role of the Histone Methyltransferase PfSET10 in Antigenic Variation by Malaria Parasites: a Cautionary TaleThe identification of specific epigenetic regulatory proteins in infectious organisms has become a high-profile research topic and a focus for several drug development initiatives. However, studies that define specific roles for different epigenetic modifiers occasionally report differing results, and we similarly provide evidence regarding the histone methyltransferase PfSET10 that is in stark contrast with previously published results...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyPhosphorylation of the Canonical Histone H2A Marks Foci of Damaged DNA in Malaria ParasitesPlasmodium falciparum is the deadliest human parasite that causes malaria when it reaches the bloodstream and begins proliferating inside red blood cells, where the parasites are particularly prone to DNA damage. The molecular mechanisms that allow these pathogens to maintain their genome integrity under such conditions are also the driving force for acquiring genome...
Observation | Host-Microbe BiologyCRISPR/Cas9-Based Knockout of GNAQ Reveals Differences in Host Cell Signaling Necessary for Egress of Apicomplexan ParasitesThe coordinated release of apicomplexan parasites from infected host cells prior to reinvasion is a critical process for parasite survival and the spread of infection. While Toxoplasma tachyzoites and Plasmodium blood stages induce a fast disruption of their surrounding membranes during their egress from host cells, Plasmodium liver stages keep the host cell membrane intact and leave their host cell in host...
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceGenetic Markers of Adaptation of Plasmodium falciparum to Transmission by American Vectors Identified in the Genomes of Parasites from Haiti and South AmericaHistorical data suggest that millions of P. falciparum parasite lineages were introduced into the Americas during the trans-Atlantic slave trade, which would suggest a paraphyletic origin of the extant isolates in the Western Hemisphere. Our analyses of whole-genome variants show that the American parasites belong to a well-supported monophyletic clade. We hypothesize...
Observation | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyDispensable Role of Mitochondrial Fission Protein 1 (Fis1) in the Erythrocytic Development of Plasmodium falciparumMalaria is responsible for over 230 million clinical cases and ∼half a million deaths each year. The single mitochondrion of the malaria parasite functions as a metabolic hub throughout the parasite’s developmental cycle (DC) and also as a source of ATP in certain stages. To pass on its essential functions, the parasite’s mitochondrion needs to be properly divided and segregated into all progeny during cell division via a process termed...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyNovel Method for the Separation of Male and Female Gametocytes of the Malaria Parasite Plasmodium falciparum That Enables Biological and Drug DiscoveryThe protozoan Plasmodium falciparum causes the most severe form of human malaria. The development of sexual forms (so-called gametocytes) is crucial for disease transmission. However, knowledge of these forms is severely hampered by the paucity of sex-specific markers and the inability to extract single sex gametocytes in high purity. Moreover, the identification of...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyRedesigned TetR-Aptamer System To Control Gene Expression in Plasmodium falciparumMalaria elimination efforts have been repeatedly hindered by the evolution and spread of multidrug-resistant strains of Plasmodium falciparum. The absence of a commercially available vaccine emphasizes the need for a better understanding of Plasmodium biology in order to further translational research. This has been partly facilitated by targeted gene...