Article
Immunology
Haoan Yi, Weiyang Jiang, Fang Yang, Fan Li, Yirong Li, Wenjing Zhu, Qing Li, Syed Hassam Fakhar, Yaming Cao, Lan Luo, Wen Zhang, Yongshu He
Summary: Studies show that G6pd-deficient mice have a survival advantage, less severe ECM, and mild liver injury when combating malaria. This protection is related to proinflammatory responses, where Th1 differentiation and dendritic cell maturation in the liver and spleen are inhibited in G6pd-deficient mice. Our findings reveal a novel understanding of how G6PD deficiency protects against malaria in vivo.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Sabrina Mota, Johanna Bensalel, Do Hee Park, Sandra Gonzalez, Ana Rodriguez, Julio Gallego-Delgado
Summary: Cerebral malaria is a severe complication of malaria infection, with a high mortality rate. This study found that a combination of a statin and an angiotensin II receptor blocker as adjunctive therapy to conventional antimalarial drugs reduced endothelial activation and improved survival rates in a mouse model of CM.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
L. Balerdi-Sarasola, C. Parolo, P. Fleitas, A. Cruz, C. Subira, N. Rodriguez-Valero, A. Almuedo-Riera, L. Letona, M. J. Alvarez-Martinez, M. Eugenia Valls, I. Vera, A. Mayor, J. Munoz, D. Camprubi-Ferrer
Summary: This study found that combining Ang-2 and CRP can effectively identify severe imported malaria in the early stages by measuring biomarkers in patients' blood. The use of a rapid prognostic test including these biomarkers has the potential to optimize the management of imported malaria and reduce complications and hospitalization rates.
TRAVEL MEDICINE AND INFECTIOUS DISEASE
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Clare K. Cimperman, Mirna Pena, Sohret M. Gokcek, Brandon P. Theall, Meha V. Patel, Anisha Sharma, ChenFeng Qi, Daniel Sturdevant, Louis H. Miller, Patrick L. Collins, Susan K. Pierce, Munir Akkaya
Summary: Hundreds of thousands of lives are lost each year due to brain damage caused by malaria. The majority of these deaths occur in sub-Saharan African children. Host genetic background plays a crucial role in determining the course and outcome of the disease.
Article
Microbiology
Sung-Jae Cha, Xiang Yu, Brian D. Gregory, Yong Seok Lee, Tomoko Ishino, Robert O. Opoka, Chandy C. John, Marcelo Jacobs-Lorena
Summary: This study identifies activation and inhibition pathways leading to cerebral malaria (CM) and provides evidence from human specimens. The researchers found that liver infection by Plasmodium sporozoites can trigger immune responses that inhibit CM development. They also identified several early-stage prognostic biomarkers for CM, which have direct relevance to human CM.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Wei Wei, Weijia Cheng, Wenhao Dai, Feng Lu, Yaru Cheng, Tingting Jiang, Zhenyu Ren, Yiting Xie, Jiahui Xu, Qun Zhao, Xianjun Yu, Yi Yin, Jian Li, Haifeng Dong
Summary: This study introduces a nanoparticle formulation of an antimalarial drug coated in a biomimetic membrane derived from brain microvascular endothelial cells and demonstrates its therapeutic efficacy in a mouse model of cerebral malaria, offering new insight into nanoparticle-based therapeutics for malaria and parasitic infections.
Article
Immunology
Johanna F. Scheunemann, Julia J. Reichwald, Patricia Jebett Korir, Janina M. Kuehlwein, Lea-Marie Jenster, Christiane Hammerschmidt-Kamper, Matthew D. Lewis, Katrin Klocke, Max Borsche, Kim E. Schwendt, Camille Soun, Stephanie Thiebes, Andreas Limmer, Daniel R. Engel, Ann-Kristin Mueller, Achim Hoerauf, Marc P. Huebner, Beatrix Schumak
Summary: The study demonstrates that mice lacking type I interferon receptor are protected from experimental cerebral malaria when infected with a transgenic parasite. The increase in CD8(+) T cells in the spleen and elevated levels of CCL5 produced by eosinophils are associated with this protection, indicating that eosinophils impact T cell migration and proliferation during infection.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Casper Hempel, Dan Milner, Karl Seydel, Terrie Taylor
Summary: Recent studies suggest that endothelial glycocalyx plays a role in malaria pathogenesis. Using postmortem brain samples, changes in specific sugar epitopes were found in cerebral capillaries of children who died from cerebral malaria compared to nonmalarial comas. These findings suggest specific remodeling of cerebral microvessels in cerebral malaria patients.
JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Aleena Das, Welka Sahu, Deepak Kumar Ojha, K. Sony Reddy, Mrutyunjay Suar
Summary: An untargeted metabolomics approach was used to identify the changes in metabolic pathways and metabolites in the serum of mice with different pathological stages of malaria. The study provides insights into the host biology during malaria and could be helpful for the selection of animal models for evaluating diagnostic and therapeutic interventions against malaria.
JOURNAL OF PROTEOME RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Laughing Bear Torrez Dulgeroff, Miranda S. Oakley, Michal C. Tal, Ying Ying Yiu, Joy Q. He, Maia Shoham, Victoria Majam, Winter A. Okoth, Pallavi Malla, Sanjai Kumar, Irving L. Weissman
Summary: CD47 is an antiphagocytic signal that inhibits programmed cell removal of self. Blocking CD47 can significantly improve the therapeutic effect against malaria infection.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Li Lv, Zihao Xu, Meichen Zhao, Jian Gao, Rumeng Jiang, Qian Wang, Xiaoyu Shi
Summary: D-mannose affects tumor growth and immune cell function through interference with glycolysis and induction of oxidative stress. In a mouse model of Plasmodium berghei infection, D-mannose reduces parasitemia and increases splenic macrophages. It also decreases the occurrence of cerebral malaria in a rodent model and reduces activation of T cells in the peripheral blood and brain.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Pedro Mejia, J. Humberto Trevino-Villarreal, Mariana De Niz, Elamaran Meibalan, Alban Longchamp, Justin S. Reynolds, Lindsey B. Turnbull, Robert O. Opoka, Christian Roussilhon, Tobias Spielmann, C. Keith Ozaki, Volker T. Heussler, Karl B. Seydel, Terrie E. Taylor, Chandy C. John, Danny A. Milner, Matthias Marti, James R. Mitchell
Summary: Levels of the adipokine leptin are associated with neuropathology in experimental cerebral malaria (ECM), with infected red blood cells (iRBCs) sequestering in white adipose tissue (WAT) microvasculature leading to increased vascular permeability and local leptin production. In mice, parasite strains that do not sequester in WAT display reduced leptin production and protection from ECM. Adipocyte leptin production is regulated by the mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) and disrupted by rapamycin, highlighting the potential implications of WAT sequestration for malaria infection pathogenesis, prognosis, and treatment.
Review
Immunology
Pranavi Muppidi, Emily Wright, Samuel C. Wassmer, Himanshu Gupta
Summary: Cerebral malaria is a severe form of malaria that can cause death, and it is characterized by the accumulation of parasitized red blood cells in the microvasculature of vital organs. Timely diagnosis and treatment are crucial for a positive outcome in cerebral malaria. However, current diagnostic tools are insufficient to assess the extent of brain dysfunction associated with cerebral malaria before the window for effective treatment closes. Various biomarkers based on host and parasite factors have been proposed as rapid diagnostic tools for early cerebral malaria diagnosis, but no specific biomarker signature has been validated. In this review, we discuss promising biomarker candidates for cerebral malaria and evaluate their suitability as point-of-care tools in malaria-endemic areas.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Hongxia Duan, Shuai Zhao, Jianquan Xiang, Chenhui Ju, Xuehui Chen, Irene Gramaglia, Xiyun Yan
Summary: The study found that endothelial CD146 plays a crucial role in experimental cerebral malaria, with its overexpression leading to the aggregation of infected red blood cells and lymphocytes, thereby disrupting BBB integrity. Deletion of endothelial CD146 or treatment with anti-CD146 antibody can prevent severe symptoms of cerebral malaria, and combined treatment with anti-CD146 antibody and antiparasitic drugs can improve cognition and memory in patients with cerebral malaria.
CELLULAR & MOLECULAR IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Tarun Keswani, Aisha Obeidallah, Edward Nieves, Simone Sidoli, Melissa Fazzari, Terrie Taylor, Karl Seydel, Johanna P. Daily
Summary: This study explored the metabolic etiology of cerebral malaria coma and found abnormal concentrations of pipecolic acid (PA) in the plasma of CM patients, which were associated with renal insufficiency. PA levels were found to be correlated with normal behavior and blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability in animal models. The findings suggest that malaria-generated PA induces coma in CM and ECM.
JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Lakshminarayan M. Iyer, A. Maxwell Burroughs, Swadha Anand, Robson F. de Souza, L. Aravind
JOURNAL OF BACTERIOLOGY
(2017)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jun Li, Michael S. Bonkowski, Sebastien Moniot, Dapeng Zhang, Basil P. Hubbard, Alvin J. Y. Ling, Luis A. Rajman, Bo Qin, Zhenkun Lou, Vera Gorbunova, L. Aravind, Clemens Steegborn, David A. Sinclair
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Lupis Ribeiro, Vitoria Tobias-Santos, Daniele Santos, Felipe Antunes, Georgia Feltran, Jackson de Souza Menezes, L. Aravind, Thiago M. Venancio, Rodrigo Nunes da Fonseca
Article
Microbiology
Janani Ravi, Vivek Anantharaman, L. Aravind, Maria Laura Gennaro
ANTONIE VAN LEEUWENHOEK INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GENERAL AND MOLECULAR MICROBIOLOGY
(2018)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Rilee Zeinert, Eli Martinez, Jennifer Schmitz, Katherine Senn, Bakhtawar Usman, Vivek Anantharaman, L. Aravind, Lauren S. Waters
JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY
(2018)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Miranda S. Oakley, Joanna K. Chorazeczewski, Maya Aleshnick, Vivek Anantharaman, Victoria Majam, Bhavna Chawla, Timothy G. Myers, Qin Su, Winter A. Okoth, Kazuyo Takeda, Adovi Akue, Mark KuKuruga, L. Aravind, Sanjai Kumar
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
A. Maxwell Burroughs, L. Aravind
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2019)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Nitin Verma, Ankit Puri, Edward Essuman, Richard Skelton, Vivek Anantharaman, Hong Zheng, Siera White, Karthigayan Gunalan, Kazuyo Takeda, Surabhi Bajpai, Timothy J. Lepore, Peter J. Krause, L. Aravind, Sanjai Kumar
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2020)
Article
Virology
Lakshminarayan M. Iyer, Vivek Anantharaman, Arunkumar Krishnan, A. Maxwell Burroughs, L. Aravind
Summary: Jumbo phages, with their extraordinary genome size, exhibit diverse adaptations across major biological systems and can be classified into three higher-order groups based on conserved gene patterns. Additionally, sensitive sequence analysis methods have identified novel protein-modifying enzymes that may help exploit host-machinery.
Article
Biology
Taylor B. Updegrove, Jailynn Harke, Vivek Anantharaman, Jin Yang, Nikhil Gopalan, Di Wu, Grzegorz Piszczek, David M. Stevenson, Daniel Amador-Noguez, Jue D. Wang, L. Aravind, Kumaran S. Ramamurthi
Summary: Hydrolysis of nucleoside triphosphates releases similar amounts of energy, with ATP typically used for energy-intensive reactions and GTP serving as a switch. The bacterial cytoskeletal protein SpoIVA, evolved from a TRAFAC class of P-loop GTPases, failed to polymerize after reengineering its nucleotide-binding pocket to mimic ancestral GTPase activity, highlighting the critical role of the nucleotide base in specific biological functions. The evolutionary pressure that drove the change in nucleotide preference in SpoIVA was suggested to be increased levels of ATP relative to GTP at the end of sporulation.
Article
Cell Biology
Thomas Delerue, Vivek Anantharaman, Michael C. Gilmore, David L. Popham, Felipe Cava, L. Aravind, Kumaran S. Ramamurthi
Summary: The protein SpoVID plays a crucial role in monitoring the polymerization state of the coat basement layer in Bacillus subtilis spores, halting sporulation when coat assembly is initiated improperly. By interacting with the membrane-bound lipid II peptidoglycan precursor, SpoVID prevents cortex assembly, linking the roles of coat and cortex assembly together.
DEVELOPMENTAL CELL
(2022)
Article
Virology
Lakshminarayan M. Iyer, A. Maxwell Burroughs, Vivek Anantharaman, L. Aravind
Summary: This study provides a comprehensive investigation of the NAD(+)-ADPr networks in virus-host conflicts and reveals their importance in viral replication and evasion. The findings suggest that these networks have been widely exploited by RNA and DNA viruses, and there is a selection for genes encoding NAD(+)-ADPr-utilizing domains across the viral world.
Article
Cell Biology
A. Maxwell Burroughs, Gurmeet Kaur, Dapeng Zhang, L. Aravind
Article
Immunology
Seeyoung Choi, Claude Warzecha, Ekaterina Zvezdova, Jan Lee, Jeremy Argenty, Renaud Lesourne, L. Aravind, Paul E. Love