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Lopez-Perez M, Seidu Z, Larsen MD, Wang W, Nouta J, Wuhrer M, Vidarsson G, Ofori MF, Hviid L. Acquisition of Fc-afucosylation of PfEMP1-specific IgG is age-dependent and associated with clinical protection against malaria. Nat Commun 2025; 16:237. [PMID: 39747065 PMCID: PMC11696684 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-55543-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 12/16/2024] [Indexed: 01/04/2025] Open
Abstract
Protective immunity to malaria depends on acquisition of parasite-specific antibodies, with Plasmodium falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein 1 (PfEMP1) being one of the most important target antigens. The effector functions of PfEMP1-specific IgG include inhibition of infected erythrocyte (IE) sequestration and opsonization of IEs for cell-mediated destruction. IgG glycosylation modulates antibody functionality, with increased affinity to FcγRIIIa for IgG lacking fucose in the Fc region (Fc-afucosylation). We report here that selective Fc-afucosylation of PfEMP1-specific IgG1 increases with age in P. falciparum-exposed children and is associated with reduced risk of anemia, independent of the IgG levels. A similar association was found for children having PfEMP1-specific IgG1 inducing multiple effector functions against IEs, particularly those associated with antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) by NK cells. Our findings provide new insights regarding protective immunity to P. falciparum malaria and highlight the importance of cell-mediated destruction of IgG-opsonized IEs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary Lopez-Perez
- Centre for translational Medicine and Parasitology, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Zakaria Seidu
- Centre for translational Medicine and Parasitology, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Immunology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana
- West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens, Department of Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana
- Zakaria Seidu, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Biosciences, University for Development Studies, Nyankpala, Ghana
| | - Mads Delbo Larsen
- Immunoglobulin Research Laboratory, Sanquin Research, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Institute for Inflammation Research, Center for Rheumatology and Spine Diseases, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Wenjun Wang
- Center for Proteomics and Metabolomics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Jan Nouta
- Center for Proteomics and Metabolomics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Manfred Wuhrer
- Center for Proteomics and Metabolomics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Gestur Vidarsson
- Immunoglobulin Research Laboratory, Sanquin Research, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Michael F Ofori
- Department of Immunology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana
| | - Lars Hviid
- Centre for translational Medicine and Parasitology, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark.
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