Intra-cluster recombination and var transcription switches in the antigenic variation of Plasmodium falciparum

被引：92

作者：

Deitsch, KW ^{[1
]}

del Pinal, A ^{[1
]}

Wellems, TE ^{[1
]}

机构：

[1] NIAID, Parasit Dis Lab, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA

来源：

MOLECULAR AND BIOCHEMICAL PARASITOLOGY | 1999年 / 101卷 / 1-2期

关键词：

var genes; antigenic variation; PfEMP1; cytoadherence; recombination; chromatin;

D O I：

10.1016/S0166-6851(99)00062-6

中图分类号：

Q5 [生物化学]; Q7 [分子生物学];

学科分类号：

071010 ; 081704 ;

摘要：

Antigenic variation and immune evasion by Plasmdium falciparum parasitized erythrocytes are mediated by expression switches among members of the multicopy var gene family. Here we describe a cluster of var genes on chromosome 12 that showed spontaneous recombination and switches in the transcription of individual genes. The transcription switches were not associated with sequence changes in promoter regions. Transfected episomes containing a luciferase reporter under control of a var promoter were expressed regardless of the transcriptional status of the endogenous promoter. The results suggest epigenetic regulation of P. falciparum var gene transcription that depends upon the local structure of chromatin and its associated proteins. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.

引用

页码：107 / 116

页数：10

共 39 条

[1] CLONING THE PLASMODIUM-FALCIPARUM GENE ENCODING PFEMP1, A MALARIAL VARIANT ANTIGEN AND ADHERENCE RECEPTOR ON THE SURFACE OF PARASITIZED HUMAN ERYTHROCYTES [J].