| Successful modification | The parasite was generated by the genetic modification |
| The mutant contains the following genetic modification(s) |
Gene disruption
|
| Reference (PubMed-PMID number) |
Reference 1 (PMID number) : 12021311
|
| MR4 number |
|
| top of page |
| Parent parasite used to introduce the genetic modification |
| Rodent Malaria Parasite | P. berghei |
| Parent strain/line | P. berghei ANKA |
| Name parent line/clone |
Not applicable
|
| Other information parent line | |
| top of page |
| The mutant parasite was generated by |
| Name PI/Researcher | T. Kariu, Y Chinzei |
| Name Group/Department | Department of Medical Zoology |
| Name Institute | Mie University School of Medicine |
| City | Tsu |
| Country | Japan |
| top of page |
| Name of the mutant parasite |
| RMgm number | RMgm-220 |
| Principal name | maebl(-) |
| Alternative name | |
| Standardized name | |
| Is the mutant parasite cloned after genetic modification | Yes |
| top of page |
| Phenotype |
| Asexual blood stage | Not different from wild type |
| Gametocyte/Gamete | Not different from wild type |
| Fertilization and ookinete | Not different from wild type |
| Oocyst | Not different from wild type |
| Sporozoite | Normal numbers of oocysts are produced. The number of midgut sporozoites per mosquito was comparable to wild type. Only a few sporozoites were found to be associated with the salivary glands. Conversely, the number of hemolymph sporozoites significantly increased, indicating that they were normally released from the oocysts but accumulated in the hemolymph as a result of the lack of sporozoite entry into the salivary gland.
Midgut sporozoites showed normal gliding motility. Mutant midgut sporozoites showed an infectivity to rats comparable to wild type midgut sporozoites. |
| Liver stage | Mutant midgut sporozoites showed an infectivity to rats comparable to wild type midgut sporozoites as shown by infection rates and prepatent period in rats after intravenous injection of sporozoites. |
| Additional remarks phenotype | Mutant/mutation
The mutant lacks expression of MAEBL.
Protein (function)
MAEBL is an 200-kD protein with a single transmembrane-like domain and is structurally related to members of the Duffy binding-like (DBL) family of homologous erythrocyte binding proteins (EBPs; EBLs - erythrocyte binding ligands) located within the micronemes of merozoites. The DBL-EBP family includes the P. vivax/P. knowlesi Duffy antigen binding proteins (DBPs) and the P. falciparum erythrocyte binding antigen 175 (EBA-175). These proteins are produced in the merozoite stage, localized in micronemes, and believed to recognize host-specific erythrocyte surface receptors and participate in a junction formation necessary for merozoite entry into the host erythrocyte. MAEBL is expressed sporozoites and is localized in the micronemes of the sporozoite stage.
Phenotype
The phenotype analyses indicate that MAEBL is essential for sporozoite invasion of the mosquito salivary gland. The analyses indicate that MAEBL is not required for liver cell infection, which is consistent with the observation that the sporozoite greatly reduced its micronemal content of PbMAEBL after salivary gland infection. No evidence was found for expression and function of MAEBL in the merozoite stage.
Additional information
MAEBL is abundantly present in midgut (oocyst derived) sporozoites but less abundant in salivary gland sporozoites.
Other mutants |
*RMgm-220
