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A spiral scaffold underlies cytoadherent knobs in Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes.

ABSTRACT: Much of the virulence of Plasmodium falciparum malaria is caused by cytoadherence of infected erythrocytes, which promotes parasite survival by preventing clearance in the spleen. Adherence is mediated by membrane protrusions known as knobs, whose formation depends on the parasite-derived, knob-associated histidine-rich protein (KAHRP). Knobs are required for cytoadherence under flow conditions, and they contain both KAHRP and the parasite-derived erythrocyte membrane protein PfEMP1. Using electron tomography, we have examined the 3-dimensional structure of knobs in detergent-insoluble skeletons of P falciparum 3D7 schizonts. We describe a highly organized knob skeleton composed of a spiral structure coated by an electron-dense layer underlying the knob membrane. This knob skeleton is connected by multiple links to the erythrocyte cytoskeleton. We used immuno-electron microscopy (EM) to locate KAHRP in these structures. The arrangement of membrane proteins in the knobs, visualized by high-resolution freeze-fracture scanning EM, is distinct from that in the surrounding erythrocyte membrane, with a structure at the apex that likely represents the adhesion site. Thus, erythrocyte knobs in P falciparum infection contain a highly organized skeleton structure underlying a specialized region of membrane. We propose that the spiral and dense coat organize the cytoadherence structures in the knob, and anchor them into the erythrocyte cytoskeleton. The high density of knobs and their extensive mechanical linkage suggest an explanation for the rigidification of the cytoskeleton in infected cells, and for the transmission to the cytoskeleton of shear forces experienced by adhering cells.

SUBMITTER: Watermeyer JM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4797390 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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A spiral scaffold underlies cytoadherent knobs in Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes.

Watermeyer Jean M JM Hale Victoria L VL Hackett Fiona F Clare Daniel K DK Cutts Erin E EE Vakonakis Ioannis I Fleck Roland A RA Blackman Michael J MJ Saibil Helen R HR

Blood 20151204 3

Much of the virulence of Plasmodium falciparum malaria is caused by cytoadherence of infected erythrocytes, which promotes parasite survival by preventing clearance in the spleen. Adherence is mediated by membrane protrusions known as knobs, whose formation depends on the parasite-derived, knob-associated histidine-rich protein (KAHRP). Knobs are required for cytoadherence under flow conditions, and they contain both KAHRP and the parasite-derived erythrocyte membrane protein PfEMP1. Using elect ...[more]

PMID: 26637786

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Project description:BackgroundThe virulence of Plasmodium falciparum malaria is related to the parasite's ability to evade host immunity through clonal antigenic variation and tissue-specific adhesion of infected erythrocytes (IEs). The P. falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein 1 (PfEMP1) family expressed on dome-shaped protrusions called knobs on the IE surface is central to both. Differences in receptor specificity and affinity of expressed PfEMP1 are important for IE adhesiveness, but it is not known whether differences in the number and size of the knobs on which the PfEMP1 proteins are expressed also play a role. Therefore, the aim of this study was to provide detailed information on isolate- and time-dependent differences in knob size and density.Methodology/principal findingsWe used atomic force microscopy to characterize knobs on the surface of P. falciparum-infected erythrocytes. Fourteen ex vivo isolates from Ghanaian children with malaria and 10 P. falciparum isolates selected in vitro for expression of a particular PfEMP1 protein (VAR2CSA) were examined. Knob density increased from ?20 h to ?35 h post-invasion, with significant variation among isolates. The knob density ex vivo, which was about five-fold higher than following long-term in vitro culture, started to decline within a few months of culture. Although knob diameter and height varied among isolates, we did not observe significant time-dependent variation in these dimensions.Conclusions/significanceThe density of knobs on the P. falciparum-IE surface depends on time since invasion, but is also determined by the infecting isolate in a time-independent manner. This is the first study to quantitatively evaluate knob densities and dimensions on different P. falciparum isolates, to examine ex vivo isolates from humans, and to compare ex vivo and long-term in vitro-cultured isolates. Our findings contribute to the understanding of the interaction between P. falciparum parasites and the infected host.

Project description:BackgroundThe intra-erythrocytic development of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum depends on the uptake of a number of essential nutrients from the host cell and blood plasma. It is widely recognized that the parasite imports low molecular weight solutes from the plasma and the consumption of these nutrients by P. falciparum has been extensively analysed. However, although it was already shown that the parasite also imports functional proteins from the vertebrate host, the internalization route through the different infected erythrocyte membranes has not yet been elucidated. In order to further understand the uptake mechanism, the study examined the trafficking of human plasminogen from the extracellular medium into P. falciparum-infected red blood cells.MethodsPlasmodium falciparum clone 3D7 was cultured in standard HEPES-buffered RPMI 1640 medium supplemented with 0.5% AlbuMAX. Exogenous human plasminogen was added to the P. falciparum culture and the uptake of this protein by the parasites was analysed by electron microscopy and Western blotting. Immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry were performed to investigate possible protein interactions that may assist plasminogen import into infected erythrocytes. The effect of pharmacological inhibitors of different cellular physiological processes in plasminogen uptake was also tested.ResultsIt was observed that plasminogen was selectively internalized by P. falciparum-infected erythrocytes, with localization in plasma membrane erythrocyte and parasite's cytosol. The protein was not detected in parasitic food vacuole and haemoglobin-containing vesicles. Furthermore, in erythrocyte cytoplasm, plasminogen was associated with the parasite-derived membranous structures tubovesicular network (TVN) and Maurer's clefts. Several proteins were identified in immunoprecipitation assay and may be involved in the delivery of plasminogen across the P. falciparum multiple compartments.ConclusionThe findings here reported reveal new features regarding the acquisition of plasma proteins of the host by P. falciparum-infected erythrocytes, a mechanism that involves the exomembrane system, which is distinct from the haemoglobin uptake, clarifying a route that may be potentially targeted for inhibition studies.

Project description:In human erythrocytes (h-RBCs) various stimuli induce increases in [cAMP] that trigger ATP release. The resulting pattern of extracellular ATP accumulation (ATPe kinetics) depends on both ATP release and ATPe degradation by ectoATPase activity. In this study we evaluated ATPe kinetics from primary cultures of h-RBCs infected with P. falciparum at various stages of infection (ring, trophozoite and schizont stages). A "3V" mixture containing isoproterenol (?-adrenergic agonist), forskolin (adenylate kinase activator) and papaverine (phosphodiesterase inhibitor) was used to induce cAMP-dependent ATP release. ATPe kinetics of r-RBCs (ring-infected RBCs), t-RBCs (trophozoite-infected RBCs) and s-RBCs (schizont-infected RBCs) showed [ATPe] to peak acutely to a maximum value followed by a slower time dependent decrease. In all intraerythrocytic stages, values of ?ATP1 (difference between [ATPe] measured 1 min post-stimulus and basal [ATPe]) increased nonlinearly with parasitemia (from 2 to 12.5%). Under 3V exposure, t-RBCs at parasitemia 94% (t94-RBCs) showed 3.8-fold higher ?ATP1 values than in h-RBCs, indicative of upregulated ATP release. Pre-exposure to either 100 µM carbenoxolone, 100 nM mefloquine or 100 µM NPPB reduced ?ATP1 to 83-87% for h-RBCs and 63-74% for t94-RBCs. EctoATPase activity, assayed at both low nM concentrations (300-900 nM) and 500 µM exogenous ATPe concentrations increased approx. 400-fold in t94-RBCs, as compared to h-RBCs, while intracellular ATP concentrations of t94-RBCs were 65% that of h-RBCs. In t94-RBCs, production of nitric oxide (NO) was approx. 7-fold higher than in h-RBCs, and was partially inhibited by L-NAME pre-treatment. In media with L-NAME, ?ATP1 values were 2.7-times higher in h-RBCs and 4.2-times higher in t94-RBCs, than without L-NAME. Results suggest that P. falciparum infection of h-RBCs strongly activates ATP release via Pannexin 1 in these cells. Several processes partially counteracted ATPe accumulation: an upregulated ATPe degradation, an enhanced NO production, and a decreased intracellular ATP concentration.

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A spiral scaffold underlies cytoadherent knobs in Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes.

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A spiral scaffold underlies cytoadherent knobs in Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes.

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