title: Circumsporozoite protein of Plasmodium berghei: gene cloning and identification of the immunodominant epitopes.
abstract: The gene encoding the circumsporozoite (CS) protein of the rodent malaria parasite Plasmodium berghei was cloned and characterized. A cDNA library made from P. berghei sporozoite RNA was screened with a monoclonal antibody for expression of CS protein epitopes. The resulting cDNA clone was used to isolate the CS protein gene from a lambda library containing parasite blood-stage DNA. The CS protein gene contains a central region encoding two types of tandemly repeated amino acid units, flanked by nonrepeated regions encoding amino- and carboxy-terminal signal and anchorlike sequences, respectively. One of the central repeated amino acid unit types contains the immunodominant epitopes.
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000953:Antigens, Protozoan / Q000235:genetics*; D000954:Antigens, Surface / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004262:DNA Restriction Enzymes; D000939:Epitopes / Q000032:analysis; D005796:Genes; D005799:Genes, Dominant; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides / Q000138:chemical synthesis; D010962:Plasmodium berghei / Q000235:genetics*; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; D011863:Radioimmunoassay
chemical_list: D000953:Antigens, Protozoan; D000954:Antigens, Surface; D000939:Epitopes; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; C041595:circumsporozoite protein, Protozoan; D004262:DNA Restriction Enzymes