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The malaria parasite has an intrinsic clock.

Filipa Rijo-Ferreira1,2, Victoria A Acosta-Rodriguez3, John H Abel4,5,6

  • 1Department of Neuroscience, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA. joseph.takahashi@utsouthwestern.edu filipa.ferreira@utsouthwestern.edu.

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|May 16, 2020
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Summary

Malaria parasite rhythms are driven by an internal clock, not host cues. This parasite clock allows Plasmodium chabaudi to maintain synchronous red blood cell bursting, even in altered host environments.

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Area of Science:

  • Parasitology
  • Chronobiology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Malarial fevers result from synchronized red blood cell (RBC) bursting by the malaria parasite.
  • The underlying mechanism for this parasite-driven synchrony and its relationship to host circadian rhythms remain unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the hypothesis that an intrinsic clock within the malaria parasite Plasmodium chabaudi drives the 24-hour rhythms of RBC bursting.
  • To determine the influence of host circadian rhythms and feeding cues on parasite synchrony.

Main Methods:

  • Studied Plasmodium chabaudi in mice with varying circadian period lengths.
  • Monitored parasite rhythms under conditions of constant feeding schedules.
  • Observed parasite synchrony in hosts lacking a functional circadian clock (mutant mice).

Main Results:

  • Plasmodium chabaudi parasite rhythms demonstrated flexibility, adapting to hosts with longer circadian periods.
  • Malaria parasite rhythms persisted independently of host feeding schedules.
  • Parasite populations maintained synchrony and rhythmicity even in host mice with arrhythmic circadian clocks.

Conclusions:

  • The findings strongly suggest that Plasmodium chabaudi possesses an intrinsic biological clock.
  • This internal parasite clock is the primary driver of synchronous RBC bursting, rather than host cues.
  • The parasite's rhythmicity may be an adaptation to anticipate its circadian environment.