Variant-specific immunity to Plasmodium berghei in pregnant mice

We have investigated the immunological basis of pregnancy-related Plasmodium berghei recrudescence in immune mice with substantial preexisting immunity. Specifically, we examined the relevance of this experimental model to the study of pregnancy-associated malaria (PAM) caused by P. falciparum in women with substantial preexisting protective immunity. We used mice with immunity induced prior to pregnancy and employed flow cytometry to assess their levels of immunoglobulin G (IgG) recognizing antigens on the surfaces of infected erythrocytes (IEs) in plasma. After immunization, the mice did not possess IgG specific for antigens on IEs obtained during pregnancy-related recrudescence but they acquired recrudescence-specific IgG over the course of several pregnancies and recrudescences. In contrast, levels of antibodies recognizing IEs from nonpregnant mice did not increase with increasing parity. Furthermore, maternal hemoglobin levels increased and pregnancy-related parasitemia decreased with increasing parity. Finally, parasitemic mice produced smaller litters and pups with lower weights than nonparasitemic mice. Taken together, these observations suggest that levels of antibodies specific for recrudescence-type IEs are related to the protection of pregnant mice from maternal anemia, low birth weight, and decreased litter size. We conclude that the model replicates many of the key parasitological and immunological features of PAM, although the P. berghei genome does not encode proteins homologous to the P. falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein 1 adhesins, which are of key importance in P. falciparum malaria. The study of P. berghei malaria in pregnant, immune mice can be used to gain significant new insights regarding malaria pathogenesis and immunity in general and regarding PAM in particular.