Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR PARASITOLOGY
Volume 39, Issue 7, Pages 755-761Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2008.11.008
Keywords
Sexual development; Gametocytes; Gametes; Zygote; Ookinete
Categories
Funding
- BBSRC [BBS/13/03858]
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [BBS/B/03742, BBS/B/03858] Funding Source: researchfish
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Successful development of Plasmodium sexual stages is essential for parasite survival, but the genes involved are poorly understood. We 'knocked out' the male development gene-1 (mdv-1) locus in Plasmodium berghei and found it to be important in female gametocyte activation. Indirect immunofluoresence assays show MDV-1 has a punctate cytoplasmic distribution in gametocytes. After activation of both females and males, MDV-1 is more peripherally located but in males exclusively it becomes concentrated in a few large foci. In vitro ookinete conversion assays that test the ability of activated female gametocytes to develop into retort stage ookinetes, suggests a complicit role for MDV-1, with the knock-out parasite producing 86% reduction in ookinetes. The retort stage ookinete develops from the zygote by increasing growth of an apical protrusion and MDV-1 locates at the 'leading' extracellular apical pole of this protrusion. In the fully developed ookinete MDV-1 is localised to the posterior pole. In vivo, the knock-out parasites demonstrate a phenotype in which there is a 90% reduction of parasite transmission to oocysts in mosquitoes. (C) 2009 Australian Society for Parasitology Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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