Reversal of Knob Formation on Plasmodium falciparum -Infected Erythrocytes
- 5 October 1984
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Science
- Vol. 226 (4670), 65-67
- https://doi.org/10.1126/science.6382613
Abstract
The human malarial parasite Plasmodium falciparum can produce surface protrusions (knobs) on infected erythrocytes; however, long-term culturing of the parasite results in the appearance of knobless cells. In this study it was found that a knob-producing clone lost the ability to produce knobs in vitro. Furthermore, a clone not producing knobs derived from the knob-producing clone regained the capacity to produce knobby cells in vitro. Certain parasite proteins were associated with the knobby phenotype but not with the knobless type. These results indicate that the parasites change in vitro in a spontaneous and reversible manner independent of immunological selection.This publication has 21 references indexed in Scilit:
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