Molecular Genetics of Malaria

Wellems, T E.

Abstract

New and irreversible modifications of genomic structure are induced in Plasmodium when the malaria parasite is subjected to stress. These modifications give rise to altered patterns of gene expression which modulate the parasite phenotype. Conditions known to induce genomic changes include drug pressure, growth environments imposed by in vitro culture, cross-fertilization between different parasite genomes, and antibody pressure. We now have the capability to enumerate, size and map chromosomes of Plasmodium. We are working to characterize the details of chromosome organization and genomic alterations induced by stress.

Funding Agency

• Agency: National Institute of Health (NIH)
• Institute: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
• Type: Intramural Research (Z01)
• Project #: 1Z01AI000483-03
• Application #: 3822102
• Support Year: 3
• Fiscal Year: 1987

Institution

• Name: Niaid Extramural Activities
• Country: United States

Publications

Cholera, Rushina; Brittain, Nathaniel J; Gillrie, Mark R et al. (2008) Impaired cytoadherence of Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes containing sickle hemoglobin. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 105:991-6

Hayton, Karen; Gaur, Deepak; Liu, Anna et al. (2008) Erythrocyte binding protein PfRH5 polymorphisms determine species-specific pathways of Plasmodium falciparum invasion. Cell Host Microbe 4:40-51

Su, Xinzhuan; Hayton, Karen; Wellems, Thomas E (2007) Genetic linkage and association analyses for trait mapping in Plasmodium falciparum. Nat Rev Genet 8:497-506

Djimde, A A; Kirkman, L; Kassambara, L et al. (2007) [In vitro cultivation of fields isolates of Plasmodium falciparum in Mali] Bull Soc Pathol Exot 100:3-5

Sa, Juliana Martha; Yamamoto, Marcio M; Fernandez-Becerra, Carmen et al. (2006) Expression and function of pvcrt-o, a Plasmodium vivax ortholog of pfcrt, in Plasmodium falciparum and Dictyostelium discoideum. Mol Biochem Parasitol 150:219-28

Fairhurst, Rick M; Wellems, Thomas E (2006) Modulation of malaria virulence by determinants of Plasmodium falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein-1 display. Curr Opin Hematol 13:124-30

Rohrbach, Petra; Sanchez, Cecilia P; Hayton, Karen et al. (2006) Genetic linkage of pfmdr1 with food vacuolar solute import in Plasmodium falciparum. EMBO J 25:3000-11

Tokumasu, Fuyuki; Fairhurst, Rick M; Ostera, Graciela R et al. (2005) Band 3 modifications in Plasmodium falciparum-infected AA and CC erythrocytes assayed by autocorrelation analysis using quantum dots. J Cell Sci 118:1091-8

Gannoun-Zaki, Laila; Jost, Amy; Mu, Jianbing et al. (2005) A silenced Plasmodium falciparum var promoter can be activated in vivo through spontaneous deletion of a silencing element in the intron. Eukaryot Cell 4:490-2

Naude, Bronwen; Brzostowski, Joseph A; Kimmel, Alan R et al. (2005) Dictyostelium discoideum expresses a malaria chloroquine resistance mechanism upon transfection with mutant, but not wild-type, Plasmodium falciparum transporter PfCRT. J Biol Chem 280:25596-603