A Putative Plasmodium RNA-Binding Protein Plays a Critical Role in Female Gamete Fertility and Parasite Transmission to the Mosquito Vector
sexual stage gametocytes are critical for parasite transmission from the human host to the mosquito vector. Mature gametocytes generate fertile male (micro-) or female (macro-) gametes upon activation inside the mosquito midgut. While a number of parasite genes have been described that are critical...
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Published in | Frontiers in cell and developmental biology Vol. 10; p. 825247 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Switzerland
Frontiers Media S.A
04.04.2022
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Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | sexual stage gametocytes are critical for parasite transmission from the human host to the mosquito vector. Mature gametocytes generate fertile male (micro-) or female (macro-) gametes upon activation inside the mosquito midgut. While a number of parasite genes have been described that are critical for
gametogenesis and fertility, no parasite gene has been shown to have a unique function in macrogametes. The genome of
encodes numerous RNA-binding proteins. We identified a novel protein containing a putative RNA-binding domain, which we named Macrogamete-Contributed Factor Essential for Transmission (MaCFET). This protein is expressed in the asexual and sexual stages. Parasites that carry a deletion of
(
), developed normally as asexual stages, indicating that its function is not essential for the asexual proliferation of the parasite
. Furthermore,
male and female gametocytes developed normally and underwent activation to form microgametes and macrogametes. However, by utilizing genetic crosses, we demonstrate that
parasites suffer a complete female-specific defect in successful fertilization. Therefore,
MaCFET is a critical female-contributed factor for parasite transmission to the mosquito. Based on its putative RNA-binding properties,
MaCFET might be in involved in the regulation of mRNAs that encode female-specific functions for fertilization or female-contributed factors needed post fertilization. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 Edited by: Jianbing Mu, National Institutes of Health (NIH), United States Friedrich Frischknecht, Heidelberg University, Germany Reviewed by: Karine Gaelle Le Roch, University of California, Riverside, United States This article was submitted to Molecular and Cellular Pathology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology |
ISSN: | 2296-634X 2296-634X |
DOI: | 10.3389/fcell.2022.825247 |