Variant surface protein GP60 contributes to host infectivity of Cryptosporidium parvum

Biological studies of the determinants of Cryptosporidium infectivity are lacking despite the fact that cryptosporidiosis is a major public health problem. Recently, the 60-kDa glycoprotein (GP60) has received attention because of its high sequence polymorphism and association with host infectivity of isolates and protection against reinfection. However, studies of GP60 function have been hampered by its heavy O-linked glycosylation. Here, we used advanced genetic tools to investigate the processing, fate, and function of GP60. Endogenous gene tagging showed that the GP60 cleavage products, GP40 and GP15, are both highly expressed on the surface of sporozoites, merozoites and male gametes. During invasion, GP40 translocates to the apical end of the zoites and remains detectable at the parasite-host interface. Deletion of the signal peptide, GPI anchor, and GP15 sequences affects the membrane localization of GP40. Deletion of the GP60 gene significantly reduces parasite growth and severity of infection, and replacement of the GP60 gene with sequence from an avirulent isolate reduces the pathogenicity of a highly infective isolate. These results have revealed dynamic changes in GP60 expression during parasite development. They further suggest that GP60 is a key protein mediating host infectivity and pathogenicity.