title: Antibodies against thrombospondin-related anonymous protein do not inhibit Plasmodium sporozoite infectivity in vivo.
abstract: Thrombospondin-related anonymous protein (TRAP), a candidate malaria vaccine antigen, is required for Plasmodium sporozoite gliding motility and cell invasion. For the first time, the ability of antibodies against TRAP to inhibit sporozoite infectivity in vivo is evaluated in detail. TRAP contains an A-domain, a well-characterized adhesive motif found in integrins. We modeled here a three-dimensional structure of the TRAP A-domain of Plasmodium yoelii and located regions surrounding the MIDAS (metal ion-dependent adhesion site), the presumed business end of the domain. Mice were immunized with constructs containing these A-domain regions but were not protected from sporozoite challenge. Furthermore, monoclonal and rabbit polyclonal antibodies against the A-domain, the conserved N terminus, and the repeat region of TRAP had no effect on the gliding motility or sporozoite infectivity to mice. TRAP is located in micronemes, secretory organelles of apicomplexan parasites. Accordingly, the antibodies tested here stained cytoplasmic TRAP brightly by immunofluorescence. However, very little TRAP could be detected on the surface of sporozoites. In contrast, a dramatic relocalization of TRAP onto the parasite surface occurred when sporozoites were treated with calcium ionophore. This likely mimics the release of TRAP from micronemes when a sporozoite contacts its target cell in vivo. Contact with hepatoma cells in culture also appeared to induce the release of TRAP onto the surface of sporozoites. If large amounts of TRAP are released in close proximity to its cellular receptor(s), effective competitive inhibition by antibodies may be difficult to achieve.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, New York 10016, USA.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gantt
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Persson
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Birkett
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Abagyan
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Nussenzweig
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000939:Epitopes; D008288:Malaria / Q000517:prevention & control*; D017780:Malaria Vaccines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009500:Neutralization Tests; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000276:immunology; D010967:Plasmodium yoelii / Q000276:immunology*; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014611:Vaccination; D014774:Virulence / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D000939:Epitopes; D017780:Malaria Vaccines; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; C069428:thrombospondin-related adhesive protein, protozoan