Plasmodium falciparum adapts its investment into replication versus transmission according to the host environment
- KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Kenya
- University of Glasgow, United Kingdom
- Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Netherlands
Abstract
The malaria parasite life cycle includes asexual replication in human blood, with a proportion of parasites differentiating to gametocytes required for transmission to mosquitoes. Commitment to differentiate into gametocytes, which is marked by activation of the parasite transcription factor ap2-g, is known to be influenced by host factors but a comprehensive model remains uncertain. Here we analyze data from 828 children in Kilifi, Kenya with severe, uncomplicated, and asymptomatic malaria infection over 18 years of falling malaria transmission. We examine markers of host immunity and metabolism, and markers of parasite growth and transmission investment. We find that inflammatory responses associated with reduced plasma lysophosphatidylcholine levels are associated with markers of increased investment in parasite sexual reproduction (i.e., transmission investment) and reduced growth (i.e., asexual replication). This association becomes stronger with falling transmission and suggests that parasites can rapidly respond to the within-host environment, which in turn is subject to changing transmission.
Data availability
Raw data and script for all the analyses in this manuscript are available at https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/BXXVRY. mzML mass spectrometry files are available at MetaboLights at https://www.ebi.ac.uk/metabolights/editor/study/MTBLS5130
Article and author information
Author details
João Luiz Silva-Filho
Funding
Wellcome Trust (110166)
- Fiona Achcar
- Lauriane Sollelis
- João Luiz Silva-Filho
- Matthias Marti
Wellcome Trust (104111)
- Fiona Achcar
- Lauriane Sollelis
- João Luiz Silva-Filho
- Matthias Marti
Royal Society (Wolfson Merit Award)
- Matthias Marti
European Research Council
- Teun Bousema
Wellcome Trust (209289/Z/17/Z)
- Abdirahman I Abdi
The funders had no role in study design, data collection and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.
Reviewing Editor
- Urszula Krzych, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, United States
Ethics
Human subjects: Ethical approval was granted by the Scientific Ethics Review Unit of the Kenya Medical Research Institute under the protocol; KEMRI/SERU/3149, and informed consent was obtained from the parents/guardian of the children.
Version history
- Received: November 24, 2022
- Preprint posted: December 2, 2022 (view preprint)
- Accepted: March 1, 2023
- Accepted Manuscript published: March 14, 2023 (version 1)
- Version of Record published: March 29, 2023 (version 2)
Copyright
© 2023, Abdi et al.
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License permitting unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.
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Plasmodium falciparum adapts its investment into replication versus transmission according to the host environment
eLife 12:e85140.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.85140
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While often undetected and untreated, persistent seasonal asymptomatic malaria infections remain a global public health problem. Despite the presence of parasites in the peripheral blood, no symptoms develop. Disease severity is correlated with the levels of infected red blood cells (iRBCs) adhering within blood vessels. Changes in iRBC adhesion capacity have been linked to seasonal asymptomatic malaria infections, however how this is occurring is still unknown. Here, we present evidence that RNA polymerase III (RNA Pol III) transcription in Plasmodium falciparum is downregulated in field isolates obtained from asymptomatic individuals during the dry season. Through experiments with in vitro cultured parasites, we have uncovered an RNA Pol III-dependent mechanism that controls pathogen proliferation and expression of a major virulence factor in response to external stimuli. Our findings establish a connection between P. falciparum cytoadhesion and a non-coding RNA family transcribed by Pol III. Additionally, we have identified P. falciparum Maf1 as a pivotal regulator of Pol III transcription, both for maintaining cellular homeostasis and for responding adaptively to external signals. These results introduce a novel perspective that contributes to our understanding of P. falciparum virulence. Furthermore, they establish a connection between this regulatory process and the occurrence of seasonal asymptomatic malaria infections.
