A system for functional studies of the major virulence factor of malaria parasites

PfEMP1 is a variable antigen displayed on red blood cells (RBCs) infected with the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. PfEMP1 mediates binding of the infected cell to the endothelium of blood vessels, a major cause of severe manifestations of malaria. Each parasite encodes ~60 different PfEMP1 variants of which only one is expressed at a time and switching between variants underlies immune evasion in the host and variant-specific severity of disease. PfEMP1 expression heterogeneity between parasites complicates its study and hampers genetic modification approaches as in many cells the modified locus is not expressed. Here we used selection linked integration to generate parasites all expressing the same PfEMP1 variant and permitting genomic modification of the expressed locus. Using this system, we study PfEMP1 trafficking, generate cell lines binding to all major endothelial receptors, survey the protein environment from functional PfEMP1 in the host cell and identify new proteins needed for PfEMP1 mediated sequestration. Overall, these approaches facilitate the study of the molecular and cellular biology of the key virulence factor of malaria parasites.