Glycophorin B is the erythrocyte receptor of Plasmodium falciparum erythrocyte-binding ligand, EBL-1.
In the war against Plasmodium, humans have evolved to eliminate or modify proteins on the erythrocyte surface that serve as receptors for parasite invasion, such as the Duffy blood group, a receptor for Plasmodium vivax, and the Gerbich-negative modification of glycophorin C for Plasmodium falciparum. In turn, the parasite counters with expansion and diversification of ligand families. The high degree of polymorphism in glycophorin B found in malaria-endemic regions suggests that it also may be a receptor for Plasmodium, but, to date, none has been identified. We provide evidence from erythrocyte-binding that glycophorin B is a receptor for the P. falciparum protein EBL-1, a member of the Duffy-binding-like erythrocyte-binding protein (DBL-EBP) receptor family. The erythrocyte-binding domain, region 2 of EBL-1, expressed on CHO-K1 cells, bound glycophorin B(+) but not glycophorin B-null erythrocytes. In addition, glycophorin B(+) but not glycophorin B-null erythrocytes adsorbed native EBL-1 from the P. falciparum culture supernatants. Interestingly, the Efe pygmies of the Ituri forest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have the highest gene frequency of glycophorin B-null in the world, raising the possibility that the DBL-EBP family may have expanded in response to the high frequency of glycophorin B-null in the population.
Mayer
D C Ghislaine
DC
Department of Biology, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1000 West Cary Street, Room 126, Richmond, VA 23284-2012, USA. gmayer@vcu.edu
Cofie
Joann
J
Jiang
Lubin
L
Hartl
Daniel L
DL
Tracy
Erin
E
Kabat
Juraj
J
Mendoza
Laurence H
LH
Miller
Louis H
LH
D000818:Animals; D000953:Antigens, Protozoan / Q000502:physiology*; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000378:metabolism / Q000469:parasitology*; D006021:Glycophorins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008024:Ligands; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D011485:Protein Binding; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000502:physiology*
D000953:Antigens, Protozoan; C066001:Duffy antigen binding protein, Plasmodium; D006021:Glycophorins; D008024:Ligands; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface