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Updated: Jul 29, 2026

Selection of Plasmodium falciparum Parasites for Cytoadhesion to Human Brain Endothelial Cells
10:09

Selection of Plasmodium falciparum Parasites for Cytoadhesion to Human Brain Endothelial Cells

Published on: January 3, 2012

Trafficking and assembly of the cytoadherence complex in Plasmodium falciparum-infected human erythrocytes

M E Wickham1, M Rug, S A Ralph

  • 1The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, PO Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne 3050, Australia.

The EMBO Journal
|October 13, 2001
PubMed

Insights

The study reveals how Plasmodium falciparum exports knob-associated histidine-rich protein (KAHRP) to cause malaria. Maurer's clefts are key to this process, acting as a novel secretory pathway outside the parasite.

Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Parasitology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Plasmodium falciparum infection causes malaria, a disease responsible for significant mortality.
  • Microvascular sequestration, mediated by infected erythrocyte adherence to capillaries, is a critical virulence factor.
  • Knob-associated histidine-rich protein (KAHRP) is essential for this cytoadherence mechanism.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To elucidate the export pathway of KAHRP from the parasite to the erythrocyte.
  • To identify sequence elements governing KAHRP trafficking.
  • To characterize the role of Maurer's clefts in protein secretion.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusions to track KAHRP localization.
  • Employed fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) to analyze protein dynamics.
  • Investigated the structural and functional aspects of Maurer's clefts.

Main Results:

  • KAHRP is secreted via an intermediate depot before reaching the erythrocyte cytoplasm and knobs.
  • Specific sequence elements were identified as crucial for distinct steps in KAHRP deployment.
  • Maurer's clefts were demonstrated to be an extended secretory pathway outside the parasite, within the host cell.

Conclusions:

  • The KAHRP export pathway is essential for Plasmodium falciparum virulence.
  • Maurer's clefts represent a unique eukaryotic secretory system transposed into the host cell.
  • Understanding this pathway offers potential targets for antimalarial interventions.

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