Production of recombinant SERA proteins of Plasmodium falciparum in Escherichia coli by using synthetic genes.

We expressed two regions of the serine repeat antigen (SERA) protein of Plasmodium falciparum in Escherichia coli by synthesizing the genes with a changed codon usage. One of the synthetic gene sequences encodes amino acid residues 17-382 (SE47') and the other encodes amino acid residues 586-802 (SE50A). The products produced by the synthetic gene sequences in E. coli accounted for 15-30% of the total bacterial protein. Antisera against both the purified gene products prepared in rats inhibited malaria parasite growth in vitro. The anti-SE47' serum was significantly more inhibitory than the anti-SE50A serum. The described methods provide a large scale preparation of recombinant antigens for improving and producing malaria vaccine.

Establishing a physical map of chromosome No. 4 of Plasmodium falciparum.

We isolated a panel of 20 DNA probes that hybridize specifically to chromosome No. 4 of Plasmodium falciparum and used them to construct a restriction map of chromosome No. 4 in the FCR3 strain. These probes were partially sequenced and had an insert size range of 70-310 bp (average 160 bp) and a GC content range of 19-53% (average 35%). Three probes were identical to previously described P. falciparum sequences. Two probes were homologous to an 18-bp repetitive sequence in a previously cloned P. falciparum gene but were not homologous to other parts of the gene. One probe sequence is a homologue of the heat shock protein, DnaJ. The location of these probes and four previously cloned probes on chromosome No. 4 were determined by using eight restriction enzymes that recognize 6-bp sites containing only G or C and 10 restriction enzymes that recognize 6-bp sites containing four G or C and two A or T. The locations of the probes were well distributed along the chromosome. Three probes were located at two sites and two probes were found at at least four sites on chromosome No. 4. Maps of chromosome No. 4 of the FCR3 strain, and three laboratory-selected, pyrimethamine-resistant derivative strains were constructed. Two of the strains, FCR3-D81 and FCR3-D85, each had two polymorphic forms of chromosome No. 4. Each of those polymorphic chromosomes had a duplicated part of the center of the chromosome making the cell diploid for the genetic material in that region. Those chromosomes also had an amplification and probable intrachromosomal translocation of a 50-kb fragment of chromosome No. 4. One strain derived from FCR3-D7, FCR3-D7-1 contained 20 copies of a tandemly amplified fragment carrying the dihydrofolate reductase-thymidylate synthase gene and an amplification of an unrelated part of the chromosome.

Isolation and characterization of a chaperonin-60 gene of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum.

We report the isolation and sequence of genomic clones encoding a chaperonin 60 gene from the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. The gene contains a single intron of 868 nucleotides, the largest yet identified in this organism. The reading frame encodes a product with a predicted length of 719 amino acid residues (81.6 kDa), which is considerably longer than any chaperonin 60 protein sequenced to date, revealing good identity with other chaperonin 60 proteins. There is a putative mitochondrial signal peptide and an usually long carboxy terminus composed almost entirely of glutamic and aspartic acid residues. The gene was located on chromosome 12, and a 4-kb transcript was identified.

In vitro sensitivity of Plasmodium falciparum to drugs that bind DNA or inhibit its synthesis.

The in vitro sensitivity of Plasmodium falciparum to bleomycin, busulfan, camptothecin, CC-1065, cisplatin, daunomycin, distamycin, luzopeptin, mAMSA, mitomycin C, naladixic acid, U71184, VM26, and VP16, or combinations of them was examined. The lethal dose concentration for 50% of parasites for 3 compounds, luzopeptin, CC1065, and U71184, that bind to adenine-thymidine-rich nucleotide sequences, were in the range of 10(-11) M. They were at least 2 orders of magnitude more effective than the other compounds.

Molecular characterization of the largest subunit of Plasmodium falciparum RNA polymerase I.

Plasmodium species possess developmentally regulated ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes. This report describes the expression and gene structure of the largest subunit of P. falciparum RNA polymerase I (RNAPI), which is responsible for the synthesis of rRNA. The RNAPI largest subunit gene was present as a single copy gene on chromosome 9. Three exons encode the 2910-amino acid RNAPI polypeptide (340 140 Da). A comparison of Plasmodium, Trypanosoma, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae nuclear RNAP largest subunits identified conserved amino acid positions and class-specific amino acid positions. Novel amino acid insertions were found between RNAPI conserved regions A and B (region A'), D and DE1 (region D'), DE2 and E (region DE2'), and F and G (region F'). Leucine zipper domains were found within regions D', DE2, and DE2'. A novel serine-rich repeat domain, a domain with homology to the C-terminal domain of eukaryotic upstream binding factor (UBF), and 4 highly conserved casein kinase II (CKII) Ser/Thr phosphorylation motifs were found within a 127-amino acid sub-region of enlarged region F'. The novel RNAPI serine-rich repeat contained a conserved motif, Ser-X3-Ser, which was also identified in the serine-rich repeat domains of the P. falciparum RNAPII and RNAPIII largest subunits, as well as within a highly homologous serine-rich repeat from trophozoite antigen R45. The results of this molecular analysis indicate that phosphorylation and dephosphorylation mechanisms regulate the activity of P. falciparum RNAPI.

Protective immunity induced in Aotus monkeys by a recombinant SERA protein of Plasmodium falciparum: adjuvant effects on induction of protective immunity.

We report the results of vaccination trial 2 of Panamanian Aotus monkeys with a recombinant blood-stage antigen, SERA 1, of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. Monkeys were immunized with SERA 1, a 262-amino-acid fragment (amino acids 24 to 285) of the 989-amino-acid SERA protein produced by the Honduras 1 strain of the parasite. Immunization mixtures contained 100 micrograms of recombinant SERA 1 protein per dose mixed with one of five different adjuvants. The protein mixed with either Freund's adjuvant or MF75.2 adjuvant stimulated protective immunity. When other P. falciparum antigens were included in the SERA 1-Freund's adjuvant mixture, no protective immunity was observed, although high anti-SERA 1 antibody titers were produced. Three other adjuvants mixed with SERA 1 failed to induce a protective immune response. These results, their relationship to those reported previously in the first vaccination trial (trial 1), and their relationships to the quantitative measurement of anti-SERA 1 antibodies in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays provided insights into the induction of a protective immune response in vaccinated monkeys.

Protective immunity induced in Aotus monkeys by a recombinant SERA protein of Plasmodium falciparum: further studies using SERA 1 and MF75.2 adjuvant.

We describe the third of three vaccination trials of Panamanian Aotus monkeys with a recombinant blood-stage antigen derived from the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. Immunization was performed with an N-terminal region of the SERA antigen (serine repeat antigen protein), SERA 1, that contains a 262-amino-acid fragment including amino acids 24 to 285 of the 989-amino-acid SERA protein. Vaccinations were carried out with the recombinant protein mixed with either Freund's, MF75.2, or MF59.2 adjuvant. A control group that did not receive SERA 1 but only MF75.2 adjuvant was included. Monkeys vaccinated with the antigen MF59.2 mixture produced low anti-SERA 1 titers and were not protected. Monkeys vaccinated with antigen and Freund's adjuvant had, in general, a higher average anti-SERA 1 titer (107,278) than did monkeys immunized with SERA 1 and MF75.2 (40, 143), yet monkeys in both groups were well protected. Monkeys that received only MF75.2 developed neither detectable anti-SERA 1 nor anti-P. falciparum antibodies prior to or 10 days after parasite challenge, yet were apparently protected against infection. Monkeys vaccinated with either SERA 1 and Freund's, SERA 1 and MF75.2, or MF75.2 alone and that had been challenged but did not develop a countable parasitemia were treated with a curative dose of mefloquine 100 days after parasite challenge and then rechallenged 40 days later. None of the five rechallenged monkeys that had originally received SERA 1 and Freund's developed a countable parasitemia. Only one of five rechallenged monkeys that originally received SERA 1 and MF75.2 developed a high countable parasitemia, while two animals developed a barely countable parasitemia. Four of the rechallenged monkeys that had originally received only MF75.2 developed a moderate to high countable parasitemia. The results indicate that vaccination with SERA 1 and either Freund's or MF75.2 adjuvant provides protection and vaccination with MF75.2 alone can provide a temporary protection unrelated to the induction of anti-SERA 1 or antimalarial antibodies.

An experimental vaccine cocktail for Plasmodium falciparum malaria.

Surface proteins from several different life-cycle stages of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum were expressed at high levels in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Purified proteins, both individually and in cocktails, were used to immunize mice and goats in conjunction with either Freund's adjuvant or a muramyl tripeptide-based adjuvant. Immune responses were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and by the ability of antisera to inhibit (1) the invasion of hepatocytes by live sporozoites, (2) in vitro invasion of human erythrocytes by live merozoites, and (3) the development of oocytes in the mosquito vector. These results suggest that cocktails of different stage-specific antigens can provide the components necessary to block the development of the malaria parasite at multiple stages of its life cycle.

An examination of the mitomycin C induction of chromosome polymorphisms in cultures of Plasmodium falciparum.

Cloned parasites of the FCR3 strain of Plasmodium falciparum that survived treatment with either mitomycin C or ethidium bromide were grown and subcloned. The chromosomes of 10 cloned isolates from each population were analysed by contour-clamped homogenous electric field gel electrophoresis. Eight of 10 isolates from the mitomycin C-treated population contained a detectable polymorphic chromosome change while none of the isolates from the ethidium bromide-treated population did. One of the polymorphic changes involved chromosome #4. A pyrimethamine resistant derivative of FCR3, FCR3-D5, that had previously been shown to contain a single nucleotide change in the dihydrofolate reductase-thymidylate synthase (DHFR-TS) gene but no detectable chromosome polymorphisms, was sequentially treated with mitomycin C and a higher concentration of pyrimethamine than the strain had previously been shown to be resistant to in order to determine if there was a correlation between the selection of chromosome #4 polymorphisms and the applied selective pressure. Most of the cloned survivors of this treatment were found to contain chromosome polymorphisms that involved chromosome #4, the chromosome on which the DHFR-TS gene is located. The polymorphic changes were usually different in the different isolates. The selection of mitomycin C-treated, pyrimethamine resistant strains with chromosome #4 polymorphisms will be discussed.

Recovery of DNA from agarose gels using a modified Elutrap.

We have made a significant improvement in the electroelution device, Elutrap (Schleicher and Schuell) by substituting an agarose gel barrier, which is made from 0.6% agarose (SeaKem GTG; FMC Corporation), into the elution chamber in place of the manufacturer specified BT2 membrane. This modification substantially increases the DNA recovery from agarose gels, even in samples containing less than 1 microgram of DNA, and shortens elution times particularly for large sizes of DNA (greater than 4.4 kbp). Additionally, the gel barrier provides a reproducible quantity and quality of DNA recovery. The high quality of the eluted DNA using the modified Elutrap makes this system suitable for further DNA manipulations.

Characterization of the gene encoding the largest subunit of Plasmodium falciparum RNA polymerase III.

We report here the isolation, sequence analysis, structure, and expression of the gene encoding the largest subunit of RNA polymerase III (RPIII) from Plasmodium falciparum. The P. falciparum RPIII gene consists of 5 exons and 4 introns, is expressed in all of the asexual erythrocytic stages of the parasite as a 8.5-kb mRNA, and is present in a single copy on chromosome 13. The predicted 2339 amino acid residue RPIII subunit contained 5 regions that were conserved between different eukaryotic RPIII subunits, and 4 variable regions that separated the conserved regions. Three of the variable regions were greatly enlarged in comparison to the corresponding variable regions in other RPIII subunits. Variable region C' represented nearly one-third of the P. falciparum RPIII subunit (750 amino acid residues), included a unique repeated decapeptide sequence, and had some homology with yeast DNA topoisomerase II. Noteworthy amino acid sequences and structures were identified in both the conserved regions and in the enlarged variable regions, and their possible role(s) as domains that regulate RPIII enzyme activity is discussed.

Protective immunity induced in Aotus monkeys by recombinant SERA proteins of Plasmodium falciparum.

We describe the vaccination of Panamanian monkeys (Aotus sp.) with two recombinant blood stage antigens that each contain a portion of the N-terminal region of the SERA (serine repeat antigen) protein of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. We immunized with either a 262-amino-acid SERA fragment (SERA I) that contains amino acids 24 to 285 of the 989-amino-acid protein or a 483-amino-acid SERA fragment (SERA N) that contains amino acids 24 to 506 as part of a fusion protein with human gamma interferon. The recombinant proteins were shown to stimulate protective immunity when administered with complete and incomplete Freund adjuvant. Four of six immunized monkeys challenged by intravenous inoculation with blood stage P. falciparum developed parasitemias that were reduced by at least 1,000-fold. Two of six immunized monkeys developed parasitemias which were comparable to the lowest parasitemia in one of four controls and were 50- to 1,000-fold lower than in the other three controls.

Immunogenicity of recombinant Plasmodium falciparum SERA proteins in rodents.

We have expressed defined regions of the serine-repeat antigen (SERA) of the Honduras-1 strain of Plasmodium falciparum in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Amino-terminal domains of the natural SERA protein have been shown previously to be targets for parasite-inhibitory murine monoclonal antibodies. Two recombinant SERA antigens were selected for purification and immunological analysis. The first (SERA 1), corresponding to amino acids 24-285 of the natural SERA precursor, was expressed by the ubiquitin fusion method. This allowed for in vivo cleavage by endogenous yeast ubiquitin hydrolase, and subsequent isolation of the mature polypeptide. The second, larger protein (SERA N), encompassing amino acids 24-506, was expressed at only low levels using this system, but could be isolated in high yields when fused to human gamma-interferon (gamma-IFN). Each purified protein was used to immunize mice with either Freund's adjuvant or a muramyl tripeptide adjuvant that has been used in humans. Sera from immunized mice were shown to be capable of in vitro inhibition of invasion of erythrocytes by the Honduras-1 strain of P. falciparum. The results suggest that a recombinant SERA antigen may be an effective component of a candidate malaria vaccine.

Mutant dihydrofolate reductase-thymidylate synthase genes in pyrimethamine-resistant Plasmodium falciparum with polymorphic chromosome duplications.

We have identified dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) gene point mutations and chromosomal changes in pyrimethamine-resistant mutants selected in vitro of Plasmodium falciparum strain FCR3. A pyrimethamine-resistant derivative of the pyrimethamine-sensitive strain FCR3, FCR3-D8, that had been grown in the absence of pyrimethamine for an extended time, was grown in two concentrations of pyrimethamine, and surviving drug-resistant parasites were subcloned. One selected mutant, FCR3-D81, that grew at 1 X 10(-6) M pyrimethamine, contained a single point mutation in the DHFR domain which caused an amino acid change (Phe to Ser) at amino acid 223, whereas another mutant, FCR3-D85, that grew at 5 X 10(-6) M pyrimethamine had that same mutation and an additional point mutation that changed amino acid 54 (Asp to Asn). The selection of FCR3-D85, whose nucleotide sequence was identical to that previously reported for FCR3-D8, confirmed that the original FCR3-D8 parasite population had changed during extended growth in vitro in the absence of drug pressure. FCR3-D81 and FCR3-D85 cells contained different pairs of polymorphic chromosomes that hybridized to a DHFR-TS probe as well as to three other chromosome 4 specific DNAs, indicating that at least part of chromosome 4 had been duplicated and that these parasites were aneuploid with 15 rather than 14 chromosomes. The mutant DHFR-TS genes were diploid. We consider the roles of the polymorphic chromosome duplications and DHFR point mutation(s) as causes of pyrimethamine resistance.

Plasmodium falciparum: analysis of chromosomes separated by contour-clamped homogenous electric fields.

We have established improved conditions for separating the chromosomes of Plasmodium falciparum by pulsed field gradient gel electrophoresis (PFG) using a contour-clamped homogenous electric field (CHEF) apparatus. Thirteen clearly separable chromosomal bands were reproducibly isolated from the strain FCR3 and their sizes have been determined. Evidence that indicates one band may contain two chromosomes is presented. The relationship between the PFG separable DNA and the number of unique chromosomes in P. falciparum is considered. We have established a relationship between the maximum resolvable sizes of the chromosomes and the pulse times. The chromosomal location of twenty-seven P. falciparum DNA probes is also reported.

Dihydrofolate reductase mutations and chromosomal changes associated with pyrimethamine resistance of Plasmodium falciparum.

The nucleotide sequence of the dihydrofolate reductase-thymidylate synthase (DHFR-TS) gene in pyrimethamine-resistant (PyrR) mutants of Plasmodium falciparum selected in vitro was examined to determine if specific mutations in DHFR were associated with drug resistance. We analysed the sequence of genomic DNA from strain FCR3, from eight previously isolated PyrR parasites derived from FCR3, and from strain Honduras-1. We found that: (1) five PyrR FCR3 mutants, FCR3-D4-D8, had an identical nucleotide change and a novel single amino acid change (Phe to Ser) at amino acid 223 of DHFR; (2) our originally reported nucleotide sequence of the DHFR-TS gene was of the PyrR strain Honduras-1, and was not of FCR3; (3) three PyrR mutants, FCR3-D1, D2, and D3, thought to have been derived from the FCR3 strain, were in fact isolates of Honduras-1. We also examined the chromosomal DNA of PyrR mutants by pulsed-field gradient gel (PFG) electrophoresis. The PyrR mutants FCR3-D1, D2, and D3 had several chromosome size polymorphisms compared to FCR3. In two of the PyrR FCR3 mutants, FCR3-D7 and D8, the chromosome 4-size DNA of FCR3 that the DHFR-TS probe normally hybridised to was not observed. Instead, in FCR3-D7, a chromosome larger than the chromosome 4-size DNA was observed to hybridise to the DHFR-TS probe. In FCR3-D8, two chromosomes that hybridised to the DHFR-TS probe were found. One of them was larger than FCR-3 chromosome 4-size DNA, and the other was smaller than FCR3 chromosome 1-size DNA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

An enlarged largest subunit of Plasmodium falciparum RNA polymerase II defines conserved and variable RNA polymerase domains.

We have isolated the gene encoding the largest subunit of RNA polymerase II from Plasmodium falciparum. The RPII gene is expressed in the asexual erythrocytic stages of the parasite as a 9 kb mRNA, and is present as a single copy gene located on chromosome 3. The P. falciparum RPII subunit is the largest (2452 amino acids) eukaryotic RPII subunit, and it contains enlarged variable regions that clearly separate and define five conserved regions of the eukaryotic RPII largest subunits. A distinctive carboxyl-terminal domain contains a short highly conserved heptapeptide repeat domain which is bounded on its 5' side by a highly diverged heptapeptide repeat domain, and is bounded on its 3' side by a long carboxyl-terminal extension.

Growth and immunity conferred by a Plasmodium falciparum temperature sensitive mutant in Panamanian owl monkeys.

We have compared the growth of the wild type Plasmodium falciparum strain Honduras 1 and a previously isolated temperature sensitive mutant of it, AP1-16, in Panamanian owl monkeys. We examined serially infected splenectomized and normal animals that were initially infected with cultured parasites that had been grown in a mixture of owl monkey and human erythrocytes. Initial infections in splenectomized monkeys were marked by multiple recrudescences. The mutant grew less well than the wild type in the splenectomized monkeys, as determined by lower peak and total parasitemias. In the splenectomized monkeys tested by rechallenge with the wild type parasite, the mutant stimulated a comparable degree of protection. That protection was manifested in 2 ways. There was a marked reduction in the level of the primary parasitemia in the rechallenged monkeys and an absence of recrudescent parasitemias after the primary parasitemia. The potential value of generating and studying temperature sensitive P. falciparum strains that show attenuated growth is considered.

Structure and expression of the Plasmodium falciparum SERA gene.

Plasmodium falciparum, strain FCR3, genomic DNA that encodes the SERA gene of P. falciparum was isolated and sequenced. The SERA gene coding region was interrupted by 3 introns, the largest number observed, so far, in any Plasmodium gene. Two SERA gene alleles, allele I and allele II, were identified in the FCR3 strain, while only allele I was found in the Honduras-1 strain. Allele I mRNA was abundant in vivo during the late trophozoite and schizont stages. Allele II mRNA was either not expressed, or it was labile.