Humoral immune responses to Plasmodium vivax subtelomeric transmembrane proteins in Thailand

Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health. 2011 Nov;42(6):1313-21.

Abstract

Plasmodium vivax subtelomeric transmembrane protein (PvSTP) is a homolog of P. falciparum SURFIN4.2', a protein exposed on the parasite-infected erythrocyte (iE) surface, and is thus considered to be exposed on P. vivax-iE. Because antibodies targeting antigens located on the surface of P. falciparum-iE, such as P. falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein 1, play an important role in regulating the course of disease, we evaluated the presence of antibodies in P. vivax-infected patients against two PvSTP paralogs, PvSTP1 and PvSTP2. Recombinant proteins corresponding to cysteine-rich domain (CRD) of the PvSTP extracellular region and the cytoplasmic region (CYT) were generated and used for the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Plasma samples (n = 70) reacted positively with recombinant PvSTP1-CRD (40%), PvSTP1-CYT (31%), PvSTP2-CRD (27%), and PvSTP2-CYT (56%), suggesting that PvSTP1 and -2 are naturally immunogenic. Specific response against either PvSTP1 or PvSTP2 indicates the existence of specific antibodies for either PvSTP1 or -2.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Antibodies, Protozoan / immunology
  • Antimalarials / therapeutic use
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Immunity, Humoral*
  • Malaria, Vivax / drug therapy
  • Malaria, Vivax / immunology*
  • Male
  • Membrane Proteins / immunology*
  • Middle Aged
  • Plasmodium falciparum / immunology
  • Plasmodium vivax / immunology*
  • Protozoan Proteins / immunology*
  • Statistics, Nonparametric
  • Thailand

Substances

  • Antibodies, Protozoan
  • Antimalarials
  • Membrane Proteins
  • Protozoan Proteins