title: Plasmodium falciparum: differential display analysis of gene expression during gametocytogenesis.
abstract: With the Plasmodium falciparum genome sequencing near completion, functional analysis of individual parasite genes has become the major task of the postgenomic era. Understanding the expression patterns of individual genes is the initial step toward this goal. In this report, we have examined gene expression during gametocytogenesis of the malaria parasite, P. falciparum, using a modified differential display (DD) method. The modifications of this method include adjusting the dNTP mix, using upstream primers with higher AT contents, and reducing the extension temperature of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). With a combination of 16 arbitrary upstream primers and 3 one-base-anchored oligo(dT) primers, we have successfully cloned 80 unique cDNA tags from stage IV-V gametocytes. Further analysis by dot blots and semiquantitative reverse transcriptase-PCR showed that at least 49 cDNAs had induced or elevated levels of expression in gametocytes. These results indicate that this modified DD procedure is suitable for large-scale identification of developmentally regulated genes in the AT-rich Plasmodium genome.
authors.affiliation: Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, 501 ASI Building, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA. luc2@psu.edu
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Rzomp
authors.forename: Q
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: S K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Williams
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry; D005718:Gametogenesis / Q000235:genetics*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D016053:RNA, Protozoan / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid
chemical_list: D018076:DNA, Complementary; D016053:RNA, Protozoan