title: Species-specific features of DARC, the primate receptor for Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium knowlesi.
abstract: The DARC (Duffy antigen/receptor for chemokines) gene, also called Duffy or FY, encodes a membrane-bound chemokine receptor. Two malaria parasites, Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium knowlesi, use DARC to trigger internalization into red blood cells. Although much has been reported on the evolution of DARC null alleles, little is known about the evolution of the coding portion of this gene or the role that protein sequence divergence in this receptor may play in disease susceptibility or zoonosis. Here, we show that the Plasmodium interaction domain of DARC is nearly invariant in the human population, suggesting that coding polymorphism there is unlikely to play a role in differential susceptibility to infection. However, an analysis of DARC orthologs from 35 simian primate species reveals high levels of sequence divergence in the Plasmodium interaction domain. Signatures of positive selection in this domain indicate that species-specific mutations in the protein sequence of DARC could serve as barriers to the transmission of Plasmodium between primate species.
authors: Section of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, The University of Texas at Austin. saras@mail.utexas.edu
authors: Ann
authors: A
authors: Demogines
authors: Kimberly A
authors: KA
authors: Truong
authors: Sara L
authors: SL
authors: Sawyer
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D004375:Duffy Blood-Group System / Q000235:genetics*; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology*; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006801:Humans; D016790:Plasmodium knowlesi / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D010966:Plasmodium vivax / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D011323:Primates / Q000235:genetics; D054730:Protein Interaction Domains and Motifs; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000235:genetics*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: C473745:ACKR1 protein, human; D004375:Duffy Blood-Group System; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface