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Erythrocytic vacuolar rafts induced by malaria parasites
K Haldar1, B U Samuel, N Mohandas
1Departments of Pathology and Microbiology-Immunology, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA. k-haldar@nwu.edu
Abstract:
Studies in the past year displaced long-standing dogmas and provided many new molecular insights into how proteins and solutes move between the erythrocyte plasma membrane and the malarial vacuole. Highlights include a demonstration that (1) detergent-resistant membrane (DRM) rafts exist in the red cell membrane and their resident proteins are detected as rafts in the plasmodial vacuole, (2) a voltage-gated channel in the infected red cell membrane mediates uptake of extracellular nutrient solutes, and (3) intraerythrocytic membranes transport a parasite-encoded adherence antigen to the red cell surface.