1
|
Habtamu K, Petros B, Yan G. Plasmodium vivax: the potential obstacles it presents to malaria elimination and eradication. Trop Dis Travel Med Vaccines 2022; 8:27. [PMID: 36522671 PMCID: PMC9753897 DOI: 10.1186/s40794-022-00185-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Initiatives to eradicate malaria have a good impact on P. falciparum malaria worldwide. P. vivax, however, still presents significant difficulties. This is due to its unique biological traits, which, in comparison to P. falciparum, pose serious challenges for malaria elimination approaches. P. vivax's numerous distinctive characteristics and its ability to live for weeks to years in liver cells in its hypnozoite form, which may elude the human immune system and blood-stage therapy and offer protection during mosquito-free seasons. Many malaria patients are not fully treated because of contraindications to primaquine use in pregnant and nursing women and are still vulnerable to P. vivax relapses, although there are medications that could radical cure P. vivax. Additionally, due to CYP2D6's highly variable genetic polymorphism, the pharmacokinetics of primaquine may be impacted. Due to their inability to metabolize PQ, some CYP2D6 polymorphism alleles can cause patients to not respond to treatment. Tafenoquine offers a radical treatment in a single dose that overcomes the potentially serious problem of poor adherence to daily primaquine. Despite this benefit, hemolysis of the early erythrocytes continues in individuals with G6PD deficiency until all susceptible cells have been eliminated. Field techniques such as microscopy or rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) miss the large number of submicroscopic and/or asymptomatic infections brought on by reticulocyte tropism and the low parasitemia levels that accompany it. Moreover, P. vivax gametocytes grow more quickly and are much more prevalent in the bloodstream. P. vivax populations also have a great deal of genetic variation throughout their genome, which ensures evolutionary fitness and boosts adaptation potential. Furthermore, P. vivax fully develops in the mosquito faster than P. falciparum. These characteristics contribute to parasite reservoirs in the human population and facilitate faster transmission. Overall, no genuine chance of eradication is predicted in the next few years unless new tools for lowering malaria transmission are developed (i.e., malaria elimination and eradication). The challenging characteristics of P. vivax that impede the elimination and eradication of malaria are thus discussed in this article.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kassahun Habtamu
- Department of Microbial, Cellular & Molecular Biology, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Menelik II Medical & Health Science College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Beyene Petros
- Department of Microbial, Cellular & Molecular Biology, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Guiyun Yan
- Program in Public Health, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697 USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Leong YW, Russell B, Malleret B, Rénia L. Erythrocyte tropism of malarial parasites: The reticulocyte appeal. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:1022828. [PMID: 36386653 PMCID: PMC9643692 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.1022828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/07/2022] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Erythrocytes are formed from the enucleation of erythroblasts in the bone marrow, and as erythrocytes develop from immature reticulocytes into mature normocytes, they undergo extensive cellular changes through their passage in the blood. During the blood stage of the malarial parasite life cycle, the parasite sense and invade susceptible erythrocytes. However, different parasite species display varying erythrocyte tropisms (i.e., preference for either reticulocytes or normocytes). In this review, we explore the erythrocyte tropism of malarial parasites, especially their predilection to invade reticulocytes, as shown from recent studies. We also discuss possible mechanisms mediating erythrocyte tropism and the implications of specific tropisms to disease pathophysiology. Understanding these allows better insight into the role of reticulocytes in malaria and provides opportunities for targeted interventions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yew Wai Leong
- A*STAR Infectious Diseases Labs, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Bruce Russell
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - Benoit Malleret
- Singapore Immunology Network, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Immunology Translational Research Program, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Laurent Rénia
- A*STAR Infectious Diseases Labs, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
- Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Günther A, Hose M, Abberger H, Schumacher F, Veith Y, Kleuser B, Matuschewski K, Lang KS, Gulbins E, Buer J, Westendorf A, Hansen W. The acid ceramidase/ceramide axis controls parasitemia in Plasmodium yoelii-infected mice by regulating erythropoiesis. eLife 2022; 11:77975. [PMID: 36094170 PMCID: PMC9499531 DOI: 10.7554/elife.77975] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 09/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Acid ceramidase (Ac) is part of the sphingolipid metabolism and responsible for the degradation of ceramide. As bioactive molecule, ceramide is involved in the regulation of many cellular processes. However, the impact of cell-intrinsic Ac activity and ceramide on the course of Plasmodium infection remains elusive. Here, we use Ac-deficient mice with ubiquitously increased ceramide levels to elucidate the role of endogenous Ac activity in a murine malaria model. Interestingly, ablation of Ac leads to alleviated parasitemia associated with decreased T cell responses in the early phase of Plasmodium yoelii infection. Mechanistically, we identified dysregulated erythropoiesis with reduced numbers of reticulocytes, the preferred host cells of P. yoelii, in Ac-deficient mice. Furthermore, we demonstrate that administration of the Ac inhibitor carmofur to wildtype mice has similar effects on P. yoelii infection and erythropoiesis. Notably, therapeutic carmofur treatment after manifestation of P. yoelii infection is efficient in reducing parasitemia. Hence, our results provide evidence for the involvement of Ac and ceramide in controlling P. yoelii infection by regulating red blood cell development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anne Günther
- Institute of Medical Microbiology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Matthias Hose
- Institute of Medical Microbiology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Hanna Abberger
- Institute of Medical Microbiology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | | | - Ylva Veith
- Institute of Biology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Burkhard Kleuser
- Institute of Pharmacy, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Kai Matuschewski
- Institute of Biology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Erich Gulbins
- Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Jan Buer
- Institute of Medical Microbiology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Astrid Westendorf
- Institute of Medical Microbiology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, Germany
| | - Wiebke Hansen
- Institute of Medical Microbiology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Hentzschel F, Gibbins MP, Attipa C, Beraldi D, Moxon CA, Otto TD, Marti M. Host cell maturation modulates parasite invasion and sexual differentiation in Plasmodium berghei. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabm7348. [PMID: 35476438 PMCID: PMC9045723 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abm7348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2021] [Accepted: 03/11/2022] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Malaria remains a global health problem causing more than 400,000 deaths annually. Plasmodium parasites, the causative agents of malaria, replicate asexually in red blood cells (RBCs) of their vertebrate host, while a subset differentiates into sexual stages (gametocytes) for mosquito transmission. Parasite replication and gametocyte maturation in the erythropoietic niches of the bone marrow and spleen contribute to pathogenesis and drive transmission, but the mechanisms underlying this organ enrichment remain unknown. Here, we performed a comprehensive analysis of rodent P. berghei infection by flow cytometry and single-cell RNA sequencing. We identified CD71 as a host receptor for reticulocyte invasion and found that parasites metabolically adapt to the host cell environment. Transcriptional analysis and functional assays further revealed a nutrient-dependent tropism for gametocyte formation in reticulocytes. Together, we provide a thorough characterization of host-parasite interactions in erythropoietic niches and define host cell maturation state as the key driver of parasite adaptation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Franziska Hentzschel
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Matthew P. Gibbins
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Charalampos Attipa
- Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK
- Department of Pathology, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, Blantyre, Malawi
- Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome Clinical Research Programme, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Dario Beraldi
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Christopher A. Moxon
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome Clinical Research Programme, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, Blantyre, Malawi
- Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Thomas D. Otto
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Matthias Marti
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| |
Collapse
|