1
|
Mahanta PJ, Lhouvum K. Plasmodium falciparum proteases as new drug targets with special focus on metalloproteases. Mol Biochem Parasitol 2024; 258:111617. [PMID: 38554736 DOI: 10.1016/j.molbiopara.2024.111617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 03/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024]
Abstract
Malaria poses a significant global health threat particularly due to the prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum infection. With the emergence of parasite resistance to existing drugs including the recently discovered artemisinin, ongoing research seeks novel therapeutic avenues within the malaria parasite. Proteases are promising drug targets due to their essential roles in parasite biology, including hemoglobin digestion, merozoite invasion, and egress. While exploring the genomic landscape of Plasmodium falciparum, it has been revealed that there are 92 predicted proteases, with only approximately 14 of them having been characterized. These proteases are further distributed among 26 families grouped into five clans: aspartic proteases, cysteine proteases, metalloproteases, serine proteases, and threonine proteases. Focus on metalloprotease class shows further role in organelle processing for mitochondria and apicoplasts suggesting the potential of metalloproteases as viable drug targets. Holistic understanding of the parasite intricate life cycle and identification of potential drug targets are essential for developing effective therapeutic strategies against malaria and mitigating its devastating global impact.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Kimjolly Lhouvum
- Department of Biotechnology, National Institute of Technology, Arunachal Pradesh, India.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Nikulkova M, Abdrabou W, Carlton JM, Idaghdour Y. Exploiting integrative metabolomics to study host-parasite interactions in Plasmodium infections. Trends Parasitol 2024; 40:313-323. [PMID: 38508901 PMCID: PMC10994734 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2024.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
Despite years of research, malaria remains a significant global health burden, with poor diagnostic tests and increasing antimalarial drug resistance challenging diagnosis and treatment. While 'single-omics'-based approaches have been instrumental in gaining insight into the biology and pathogenicity of the Plasmodium parasite and its interaction with the human host, a more comprehensive understanding of malaria pathogenesis can be achieved through 'multi-omics' approaches. Integrative methods, which combine metabolomics, lipidomics, transcriptomics, and genomics datasets, offer a holistic systems biology approach to studying malaria. This review highlights recent advances, future directions, and challenges involved in using integrative metabolomics approaches to interrogate the interactions between Plasmodium and the human host, paving the way towards targeted antimalaria therapeutics and control intervention methods.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maria Nikulkova
- Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY 11101, USA; Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Wael Abdrabou
- Program in Biology, Division of Science and Mathematics, New York University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Jane M Carlton
- Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY 11101, USA; Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
| | - Youssef Idaghdour
- Program in Biology, Division of Science and Mathematics, New York University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Simwela NV, Guiguemde WA, Straimer J, Regnault C, Stokes BH, Tavernelli LE, Yokokawa F, Taft B, Diagana TT, Barrett MP, Waters AP. A conserved metabolic signature associated with response to fast-acting anti-malarial agents. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0397622. [PMID: 37800971 PMCID: PMC10714989 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.03976-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2022] [Accepted: 01/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/07/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE In malaria drug discovery, understanding the mode of action of lead compounds is important as it helps in predicting the potential emergence of drug resistance in the field when these drugs are eventually deployed. In this study, we have employed metabolomics technologies to characterize the potential targets of anti-malarial drug candidates in the developmental pipeline at NITD. We show that NITD fast-acting leads belonging to spiroindolone and imidazothiadiazole class induce a common biochemical theme in drug-exposed malaria parasites which is similar to another fast-acting, clinically available drug, DHA. These biochemical features which are absent in a slower acting NITD lead (GNF17) point to hemoglobin digestion and inhibition of the pyrimidine pathway as potential action points for these drugs. These biochemical themes can be used to identify and inform on the mode of action of fast drug candidates of similar profiles in future drug discovery programs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nelson V. Simwela
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | | | - Judith Straimer
- Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Clement Regnault
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Barbara H. Stokes
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Luis E. Tavernelli
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Fumiaki Yokokawa
- Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Benjamin Taft
- Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases, Emeryville, California, USA
| | | | - Michael P. Barrett
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew P. Waters
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Anand A, Chandana M, Ghosh S, Das R, Singh N, Vaishalli PM, Gantasala NP, Padmanaban G, Nagaraj VA. Significance of Plasmodium berghei Amino Acid Transporter 1 in Food Vacuole Functionality and Its Association with Cerebral Pathogenesis. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0494322. [PMID: 36976018 PMCID: PMC10101031 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.04943-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2022] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The food vacuole plays a central role in the blood stage of parasite development by digesting host hemoglobin acquired from red blood cells and detoxifying the host heme released during hemoglobin digestion into hemozoin. Blood-stage parasites undergo periodic schizont bursts, releasing food vacuoles containing hemozoin. Clinical studies in malaria-infected patients and in vivo animal studies have shown the association of hemozoin with disease pathogenesis and abnormal host immune responses in malaria. Here, we perform a detailed in vivo characterization of putative Plasmodium berghei amino acid transporter 1 localized in the food vacuole to understand its significance in the malaria parasite. We show that the targeted deletion of amino acid transporter 1 in Plasmodium berghei leads to a swollen food vacuole phenotype with the accumulation of host hemoglobin-derived peptides. Plasmodium berghei amino acid transporter 1-knockout parasites produce less hemozoin, and the hemozoin crystals display a thin morphology compared with wild-type parasites. The knockout parasites show reduced sensitivity to chloroquine and amodiaquine by showing recrudescence. More importantly, mice infected with the knockout parasites are protected from cerebral malaria and display reduced neuronal inflammation and cerebral complications. Genetic complementation of the knockout parasites restores the food vacuole morphology with hemozoin levels similar to that of wild-type parasites, causing cerebral malaria in the infected mice. The knockout parasites also show a significant delay in male gametocyte exflagellation. Our findings highlight the significance of amino acid transporter 1 in food vacuole functionality and its association with malaria pathogenesis and gametocyte development. IMPORTANCE Food vacuoles of the malaria parasite are involved in the degradation of red blood cell hemoglobin. The amino acids derived from hemoglobin degradation support parasite growth, and the heme released is detoxified into hemozoin. Antimalarials such as quinolines target hemozoin formation in the food vacuole. Food vacuole transporters transport hemoglobin-derived amino acids and peptides from the food vacuole to the parasite cytosol. Such transporters are also associated with drug resistance. Here, we show that the deletion of amino acid transporter 1 in Plasmodium berghei leads to swollen food vacuoles with the accumulation of hemoglobin-derived peptides. The transporter-deleted parasites generate less hemozoin with thin crystal morphology and show reduced sensitivity to quinolines. Mice infected with transporter-deleted parasites are protected from cerebral malaria. There is also a delay in male gametocyte exflagellation, affecting transmission. Our findings uncover the functional significance of amino acid transporter 1 in the life cycle of the malaria parasite.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Aditya Anand
- Infectious Disease Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
- Regional Centre for Biotechnology, Faridabad, Haryana, India
| | - Manjunatha Chandana
- Infectious Disease Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
- School of Biotechnology, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Sourav Ghosh
- Infectious Disease Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
- Regional Centre for Biotechnology, Faridabad, Haryana, India
| | - Rahul Das
- Infectious Disease Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
- Regional Centre for Biotechnology, Faridabad, Haryana, India
| | - Nalini Singh
- Infectious Disease Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Pradeep Mini Vaishalli
- Infectious Disease Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
- Regional Centre for Biotechnology, Faridabad, Haryana, India
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
5
|
Willems A, Kalaw A, Ecer A, Kotwal A, Roepe LD, Roepe PD. Structures of Plasmodium falciparum Chloroquine Resistance Transporter (PfCRT) Isoforms and Their Interactions with Chloroquine. Biochemistry 2023; 62:1093-1110. [PMID: 36800498 PMCID: PMC10950298 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.2c00669] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 02/02/2023] [Indexed: 02/19/2023]
Abstract
Using a recently elucidated atomic-resolution cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure for the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) protein 7G8 isoform as template [Kim, J.; Nature 2019, 576, 315-320], we use Monte Carlo molecular dynamics (MC/MD) simulations of PfCRT embedded in a 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (POPC) membrane to solve energy-minimized structures for 7G8 PfCRT and two additional PfCRT isoforms that harbor 5 or 7 amino acid substitutions relative to 7G8 PfCRT. Guided by drug binding previously defined using chloroquine (CQ) photoaffinity probe labeling, we also use MC/MD energy minimization to elucidate likely CQ binding geometries for the three membrane-embedded isoforms. We inventory salt bridges and hydrogen bonds in these structures and summarize how the limited changes in primary sequence subtly perturb local PfCRT isoform structure. In addition, we use the "AlphaFold" artificial intelligence AlphaFold2 (AF2) algorithm to solve for domain structure that was not resolved in the previously reported 7G8 PfCRT cryo-EM structure, and perform MC/MD energy minimization for the membrane-embedded AF2 structures of all three PfCRT isoforms. We compare energy-minimized structures generated using cryo-EM vs AF2 templates. The results suggest how amino acid substitutions in drug resistance-associated isoforms of PfCRT influence PfCRT structure and CQ transport.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Ayse Ecer
- Departments of Chemistry
and Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets NW, Washington, District of Columbia 20057, United States
| | - Amitesh Kotwal
- Departments of Chemistry
and Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets NW, Washington, District of Columbia 20057, United States
| | | | - Paul D. Roepe
- Departments of Chemistry
and Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets NW, Washington, District of Columbia 20057, United States
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Wicht KJ, Small-Saunders JL, Hagenah LM, Mok S, Fidock DA. Mutant PfCRT Can Mediate Piperaquine Resistance in African Plasmodium falciparum With Reduced Fitness and Increased Susceptibility to Other Antimalarials. J Infect Dis 2022; 226:2021-2029. [PMID: 36082431 PMCID: PMC9704436 DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiac365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Additional therapeutic strategies could benefit efforts to reverse the recent increase in malaria cases in sub-Saharan Africa, which mostly affects young children. A primary candidate is dihydroartemisinin + piperaquine (DHA + PPQ), which is effective for uncomplicated malaria treatment, seasonal malaria chemoprevention, and intermittent preventive treatment. In Southeast Asia, Plasmodium falciparum parasites acquired PPQ resistance, mediated primarily by mutations in the P falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter PfCRT. The recent emergence in Africa of DHA-resistant parasites creates an imperative to assess whether PPQ resistance could emerge in African parasites with distinct PfCRT isoforms. METHODS We edited 2 PfCRT mutations known to mediate high-grade PPQ resistance in Southeast Asia into GB4 parasites from Gabon. Gene-edited clones were profiled in antimalarial concentration-response and fitness assays. RESULTS The PfCRT F145I mutation mediated moderate PPQ resistance in GB4 parasites but with a substantial fitness cost. No resistance was observed with the PfCRT G353V mutant. Both edited clones became significantly more susceptible to amodiaquine, chloroquine, and quinine. CONCLUSIONS A single PfCRT mutation can mediate PPQ resistance in GB4 parasites, but with a growth defect that may preclude its spread without further genetic adaptations. Our findings support regional use of drug combinations that exert opposing selective pressures on PfCRT.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn J Wicht
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - Jennifer L Small-Saunders
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
- Center for Malaria Therapeutics and Antimalarial Resistance, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York , New York, USA
| | - Laura M Hagenah
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - Sachel Mok
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - David A Fidock
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
- Center for Malaria Therapeutics and Antimalarial Resistance, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York , New York, USA
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Okombo J, Mok S, Qahash T, Yeo T, Bath J, Orchard LM, Owens E, Koo I, Albert I, Llinás M, Fidock DA. Piperaquine-resistant PfCRT mutations differentially impact drug transport, hemoglobin catabolism and parasite physiology in Plasmodium falciparum asexual blood stages. PLoS Pathog 2022; 18:e1010926. [PMID: 36306287 PMCID: PMC9645663 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1010926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2022] [Revised: 11/09/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The emergence of Plasmodium falciparum parasite resistance to dihydroartemisinin + piperaquine (PPQ) in Southeast Asia threatens plans to increase the global use of this first-line antimalarial combination. High-level PPQ resistance appears to be mediated primarily by novel mutations in the P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT), which enhance parasite survival at high PPQ concentrations in vitro and increase the risk of dihydroartemisinin + PPQ treatment failure in patients. Using isogenic Dd2 parasites expressing contemporary pfcrt alleles with differential in vitro PPQ susceptibilities, we herein characterize the molecular and physiological adaptations that define PPQ resistance in vitro. Using drug uptake and cellular heme fractionation assays we report that the F145I, M343L, and G353V PfCRT mutations differentially impact PPQ and chloroquine efflux. These mutations also modulate proteolytic degradation of host hemoglobin and the chemical inactivation of reactive heme species. Peptidomic analyses reveal significantly higher accumulation of putative hemoglobin-derived peptides in the PPQ-resistant mutant PfCRT isoforms compared to parental PPQ-sensitive Dd2. Joint transcriptomic and metabolomic profiling of late trophozoites from PPQ-resistant or -sensitive isogenic lines reveals differential expression of genes involved in protein translation and cellular metabolism. PPQ-resistant parasites also show increased susceptibility to an inhibitor of the P. falciparum M17 aminopeptidase that operates on short globin-derived peptides. These results reveal unique physiological changes caused by the gain of PPQ resistance and highlight the potential therapeutic value of targeting peptide metabolism in P. falciparum.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- John Okombo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Sachel Mok
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
- Center for Malaria Therapeutics and Antimicrobial Resistance, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Tarrick Qahash
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Huck Center for Malaria Research, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Tomas Yeo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Jade Bath
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Lindsey M. Orchard
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Huck Center for Malaria Research, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Edward Owens
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Huck Center for Malaria Research, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Imhoi Koo
- Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Istvan Albert
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Manuel Llinás
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Huck Center for Malaria Research, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - David A. Fidock
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
- Center for Malaria Therapeutics and Antimicrobial Resistance, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Sanchez CP, Manson EDT, Moliner Cubel S, Mandel L, Weidt SK, Barrett MP, Lanzer M. The Knock-Down of the Chloroquine Resistance Transporter PfCRT Is Linked to Oligopeptide Handling in Plasmodium falciparum. Microbiol Spectr 2022; 10:e0110122. [PMID: 35867395 PMCID: PMC9431119 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.01101-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The chloroquine resistance transporter, PfCRT, is an essential factor during intraerythrocytic development of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. PfCRT resides at the digestive vacuole of the parasite, where hemoglobin taken up by the parasite from its host cell is degraded. PfCRT can acquire several mutations that render PfCRT a drug transporting system expelling compounds targeting hemoglobin degradation from the digestive vacuole. The non-drug related function of PfCRT is less clear, although a recent study has suggested a role in oligopeptide transport based on studies conducted in a heterologous expression system. The uncertainty about the natural function of PfCRT is partly due to a lack of a null mutant and a dearth of functional assays in the parasite. Here, we report on the generation of a conditional PfCRT knock-down mutant in P. falciparum. The mutant accumulated oligopeptides 2 to at least 8 residues in length under knock-down conditions, as shown by comparative global metabolomics. The accumulated oligopeptides were structurally diverse, had an isoelectric point between 4.0 and 5.4 and were electrically neutral or carried a single charge at the digestive vacuolar pH of 5.2. Fluorescently labeled dipeptides and live cell imaging identified the digestive vacuole as the compartment where oligopeptides accumulated. Our findings suggest a function of PfCRT in oligopeptide transport across the digestive vacuolar membrane in P. falciparum and associated with it a role in nutrient acquisition and the maintenance of the colloid osmotic balance. IMPORTANCE The chloroquine resistance transporter, PfCRT, is important for the survival of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. It increases the tolerance to many antimalarial drugs, and it is essential for the development of the parasite within red blood cells. While we understand the role of PfCRT in drug resistance in ever increasing detail, the non-drug resistance functions are still debated. Identifying the natural substrate of PfCRT has been hampered by a paucity of functional assays to test putative substrates in the parasite system and the absence of a parasite mutant deficient for the PfCRT encoding gene. By generating a conditional PfCRT knock-down mutant, together with comparative metabolomics and uptake studies using fluorescently labeled oligopeptides, we could show that PfCRT is an oligopeptide transporter. The oligopeptides were structurally diverse and were electrically neutral or carried a single charge. Our data support a function of PfCRT in oligopeptide transport.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cecilia P. Sanchez
- Center of Infectious Diseases, Parasitology, Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | - Sonia Moliner Cubel
- Center of Infectious Diseases, Parasitology, Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | - Stefan K. Weidt
- Glasgow Polyomics, University of Glasgow, Wolfson Wohl Cancer Research Centre, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Michael P. Barrett
- Glasgow Polyomics, University of Glasgow, Wolfson Wohl Cancer Research Centre, Glasgow, United Kingdom
- The Wellcome Centre for Integrative Parasitology, Institute for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Lanzer
- Center of Infectious Diseases, Parasitology, Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Mapar M, Rydzak T, Groves RA, Lewis IA. Biomarker enrichment medium: A defined medium for metabolomic analysis of microbial pathogens. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:957158. [PMID: 35935218 PMCID: PMC9354526 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.957158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Microbes have diverse metabolic capabilities and differences in these phenotypes are critical for differentiating strains, species, and broader taxa of microorganisms. Recent advances in liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) allow researchers to track the complex combinations of molecules that are taken up by each cell type and to quantify the rates that individual metabolites enter or exit the cells. This metabolomics-based approach allows complex metabolic phenotypes to be captured in a single assay, enables computational models of microbial metabolism to be constructed, and can serve as a diagnostic approach for clinical microbiology. Unfortunately, metabolic phenotypes are directly affected by the molecular composition of the culture medium and many traditional media are subject to molecular-level heterogeneity. Herein, we show that commercially sourced Mueller Hinton (MH) medium, a Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) approved medium for clinical microbiology, has significant lot-to-lot and supplier-to-supplier variability in the concentrations of individual nutrients. We show that this variability does not affect microbial growth rates but does affect the metabolic phenotypes observed in vitro—including metabolic phenotypes that distinguish six common pathogens. To address this, we used a combination of isotope-labeling, substrate exclusion, and nutritional supplementation experiments using Roswell Park Memorial Institute (RPMI) medium to identify the specific nutrients used by the microbes to produce diagnostic biomarkers, and to formulate a Biomarker Enrichment Medium (BEM) as an alternative to complex undefined media for metabolomics research, clinical diagnostics, antibiotic susceptibility testing, and other applications where the analysis of stable microbial metabolic phenotypes is important.
Collapse
|
10
|
Bihan DG, Rydzak T, Wyss M, Pittman K, McCoy KD, Lewis IA. Method for absolute quantification of short chain fatty acids via reverse phase chromatography mass spectrometry. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0267093. [PMID: 35443015 PMCID: PMC9020710 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0267093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2021] [Accepted: 04/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs; including acetate, propionate, and butyrate) are an important class of biological molecules that play a major role in modulating host-microbiome interactions. Despite significant research into SCFA-mediated biological mechanisms, absolute quantification of these molecules in their native form by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry is challenging due to their relatively poor chromatographic properties. Herein, we introduce SQUAD, an isotope-based strategy for absolute quantification of SCFAs in complex biological samples. SQUAD uses aniline derivatization in conjunction with isotope dilution and analysis by reverse-phase liquid chromatography mass spectrometry. We show that SQUAD enables absolute quantification of biologically relevant SCFAs in complex biological samples with a lower limit of detection of 40 nM and a lower limit of quantification ranging from 160 nM to 310 nM. We observed an intra- and inter-day precision under 3% (relative standard deviation) and errors in intra- and inter-day accuracy under 10%. To demonstrate this quantification strategy, we analyzed SCFAs in the caecal contents of germ free versus conventionally raised specific pathogen free (SPF) mice. We showed that acetate was the most abundant SCFA in both types of mice and was present at 200-fold higher concentration in the SPF mice. We also illustrated the use of our quantification strategy in in vitro microbial cultures from five different species of bacteria grown in Mueller Hinton media. This study illustrates the diverse SCFA production rates across microbial taxa with acetate production serving as one of the key differentiating factors across the species. In summary, we introduce an isotope dilution strategy for absolute quantification of aniline-dativized SCFAs and illustrate the utility of this approach for microbiome research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dominique G. Bihan
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Thomas Rydzak
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Madeleine Wyss
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Keir Pittman
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Kathy D. McCoy
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Ian A. Lewis
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Matz JM. Plasmodium’s bottomless pit: properties and functions of the malaria parasite's digestive vacuole. Trends Parasitol 2022; 38:525-543. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2022.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2021] [Revised: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|
12
|
Small-Saunders JL, Hagenah LM, Wicht KJ, Dhingra SK, Deni I, Kim J, Vendome J, Gil-Iturbe E, Roepe PD, Mehta M, Mancia F, Quick M, Eppstein MJ, Fidock DA. Evidence for the early emergence of piperaquine-resistant Plasmodium falciparum malaria and modeling strategies to mitigate resistance. PLoS Pathog 2022; 18:e1010278. [PMID: 35130315 PMCID: PMC8853508 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1010278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2021] [Revised: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Multidrug-resistant Plasmodium falciparum parasites have emerged in Cambodia and neighboring countries in Southeast Asia, compromising the efficacy of first-line antimalarial combinations. Dihydroartemisinin + piperaquine (PPQ) treatment failure rates have risen to as high as 50% in some areas in this region. For PPQ, resistance is driven primarily by a series of mutant alleles of the P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT). PPQ resistance was reported in China three decades earlier, but the molecular driver remained unknown. Herein, we identify a PPQ-resistant pfcrt allele (China C) from Yunnan Province, China, whose genotypic lineage is distinct from the PPQ-resistant pfcrt alleles currently observed in Cambodia. Combining gene editing and competitive growth assays, we report that PfCRT China C confers moderate PPQ resistance while re-sensitizing parasites to chloroquine (CQ) and incurring a fitness cost that manifests as a reduced rate of parasite growth. PPQ transport assays using purified PfCRT isoforms, combined with molecular dynamics simulations, highlight differences in drug transport kinetics and in this transporter’s central cavity conformation between China C and the current Southeast Asian PPQ-resistant isoforms. We also report a novel computational model that incorporates empirically determined fitness landscapes at varying drug concentrations, combined with antimalarial susceptibility profiles, mutation rates, and drug pharmacokinetics. Our simulations with PPQ-resistant or -sensitive parasite lines predict that a three-day regimen of PPQ combined with CQ can effectively clear infections and prevent the evolution of PfCRT variants. This work suggests that including CQ in combination therapies could be effective in suppressing the evolution of PfCRT-mediated multidrug resistance in regions where PPQ has lost efficacy. The recent emergence of Plasmodium falciparum parasite resistance to the antimalarial drug piperaquine (PPQ) has contributed to frequent treatment failures across Southeast Asia, originating in Cambodia. Here, we show that earlier reports of PPQ resistance in Yunnan Province, China could be explained by the unique China C variant of the P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter PfCRT. Gene-edited parasites show a loss of fitness and parasite resensitization to the chemically related former first-line antimalarial chloroquine, while acquiring PPQ resistance via drug efflux. Molecular features of drug resistance were examined using biochemical assays to measure mutant PfCRT-mediated drug transport and molecular dynamics simulations with the recently solved PfCRT structure to assess changes in the central drug-binding cavity. We also describe a new computational model that incorporates parasite mutation rates, fitness costs, antimalarial susceptibilities, and drug pharmacological profiles to predict how infections with parasite strains expressing distinct PfCRT variants can evolve and be selected in response to different drug pressures and regimens. Simulations predict that a three-day regimen of PPQ plus chloroquine would be fully effective at preventing recrudescence of drug-resistant infections.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Small-Saunders
- Center for Malaria Therapeutics and Antimicrobial Resistance, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Laura M Hagenah
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Kathryn J Wicht
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Satish K Dhingra
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Ioanna Deni
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Jonathan Kim
- Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York United States of America
| | - Jeremie Vendome
- Schrödinger, Inc., New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Eva Gil-Iturbe
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Paul D Roepe
- Department of Chemistry, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, United States of America
- Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Monica Mehta
- Center for Malaria Therapeutics and Antimicrobial Resistance, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Filippo Mancia
- Department of Physiology and Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York United States of America
| | - Matthias Quick
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
- Division of Molecular Therapeutics, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York, United States of America
- Center for Molecular Recognition, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Margaret J Eppstein
- Vermont Complex Systems Center, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, United States of America
- Department of Computer Science, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, United States of America
- Translational Global Infectious Diseases Research Center, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, United States of America
| | - David A Fidock
- Center for Malaria Therapeutics and Antimicrobial Resistance, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Edgar RCS, Counihan NA, McGowan S, de Koning-Ward TF. Methods Used to Investigate the Plasmodium falciparum Digestive Vacuole. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2022; 11:829823. [PMID: 35096663 PMCID: PMC8794586 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2021.829823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2021] [Accepted: 12/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Plasmodium falciparum malaria remains a global health problem as parasites continue to develop resistance to all antimalarials in use. Infection causes clinical symptoms during the intra-erythrocytic stage of the lifecycle where the parasite infects and replicates within red blood cells (RBC). During this stage, P. falciparum digests the main constituent of the RBC, hemoglobin, in a specialized acidic compartment termed the digestive vacuole (DV), a process essential for survival. Many therapeutics in use target one or multiple aspects of the DV, with chloroquine and its derivatives, as well as artemisinin, having mechanisms of action within this organelle. In order to better understand how current therapeutics and those under development target DV processes, techniques used to investigate the DV are paramount. This review outlines the involvement of the DV in therapeutics currently in use and focuses on the range of techniques that are currently utilized to study this organelle including microscopy, biochemical analysis, genetic approaches and metabolomic studies. Importantly, continued development and application of these techniques will aid in our understanding of the DV and in the development of new therapeutics or therapeutic partners for the future.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca C. S. Edgar
- School of Medicine, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia
- The Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia
| | - Natalie A. Counihan
- School of Medicine, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia
- The Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia
| | - Sheena McGowan
- Biomedicine Discovery Institute and Department of Microbiology, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
- Centre to Impact AMR, Monash University, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Tania F. de Koning-Ward
- School of Medicine, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia
- The Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Piro F, Focaia R, Dou Z, Masci S, Smith D, Di Cristina M. An Uninvited Seat at the Dinner Table: How Apicomplexan Parasites Scavenge Nutrients from the Host. Microorganisms 2021; 9:2592. [PMID: 34946193 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9122592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Revised: 12/10/2021] [Accepted: 12/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Obligate intracellular parasites have evolved a remarkable assortment of strategies to scavenge nutrients from the host cells they parasitize. Most apicomplexans form a parasitophorous vacuole (PV) within the invaded cell, a replicative niche within which they survive and multiply. As well as providing a physical barrier against host cell defense mechanisms, the PV membrane (PVM) is also an important site of nutrient uptake that is essential for the parasites to sustain their metabolism. This means nutrients in the extracellular milieu are separated from parasite metabolic machinery by three different membranes, the host plasma membrane, the PVM, and the parasite plasma membrane (PPM). In order to facilitate nutrient transport from the extracellular environment into the parasite itself, transporters on the host cell membrane of invaded cells can be modified by secreted and exported parasite proteins to maximize uptake of key substrates to meet their metabolic demand. To overcome the second barrier, the PVM, apicomplexan parasites secrete proteins contained in the dense granules that remodel the vacuole and make the membrane permissive to important nutrients. This bulk flow of host nutrients is followed by a more selective uptake of substrates at the PPM that is operated by specific transporters of this third barrier. In this review, we recapitulate and compare the strategies developed by Apicomplexa to scavenge nutrients from their hosts, with particular emphasis on transporters at the parasite plasma membrane and vacuolar solute transporters on the parasite intracellular digestive organelle.
Collapse
|
15
|
Pereira LOR, Sousa CS, Ramos HCP, Torres-Santos EC, Pinheiro LS, Alves MR, Cuervo P, Romero GAS, Boité MC, Porrozzi R, Cupolillo E. Insights from Leishmania (Viannia) guyanensis in vitro behavior and intercellular communication. Parasit Vectors 2021; 14:556. [PMID: 34711290 PMCID: PMC8554959 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-021-05057-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2020] [Accepted: 08/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pentavalent antimonial-based chemotherapy is the first-line approach for leishmaniasis treatment and disease control. Nevertheless antimony-resistant parasites have been reported in some endemic regions. Treatment refractoriness is complex and is associated with patient- and parasite-related variables. Although amastigotes are the parasite stage in the vertebrate host and, thus, exposed to the drug, the stress caused by trivalent antimony in promastigotes has been shown to promote significant modification in expression of several genes involved in various biological processes, which will ultimately affect parasite behavior. Leishmania (Viannia) guyanensis is one of the main etiological agents in the Amazon Basin region, with a high relapse rate (approximately 25%). METHODS Herein, we conducted several in vitro analyses with L. (V.) guyanensis strains derived from cured and refractory patients after treatment with standardized antimonial therapeutic schemes, in addition to a drug-resistant in vitro-selected strain. Drug sensitivity assessed through Sb(III) half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) assays, growth patterns (with and without drug pressure) and metacyclic-like percentages were determined for all strains and compared to treatment outcomes. Finally, co-cultivation without intercellular contact was followed by parasitic density and Sb(III) IC50 measurements. RESULTS Poor treatment response was correlated with increased Sb(III) IC50 values. The decrease in drug sensitivity was associated with a reduced cell replication rate, increased in vitro growth ability, and higher metacyclic-like proportion. Additionally, in vitro co-cultivation assays demonstrated that intercellular communication enabled lower drug sensitivity and enhanced in vitro growth ability, regardless of direct cell contact. CONCLUSIONS Data concerning drug sensitivity in the Viannia subgenus are emerging, and L. (V.) guyanensis plays a pivotal epidemiological role in Latin America. Therefore, investigating the parasitic features potentially related to relapses is urgent. Altogether, the data presented here indicate that all tested strains of L. (V.) guyanensis displayed an association between treatment outcome and in vitro parameters, especially the drug sensitivity. Remarkably, sharing enhanced growth ability and decreased drug sensitivity, without intercellular communication, were demonstrated.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Luiza O R Pereira
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Leishmanioses, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Cíntia S Sousa
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Leishmanioses, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Hellen C P Ramos
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Leishmanioses, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | - Liliane S Pinheiro
- Laboratório de Bioquímica de Tripanossomatídeos, IOC, FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,Instituto de Saúde e Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Amazonas, Campus Coari, Amazonas, Brazil
| | - Marcelo R Alves
- Laboratório de Pesquisa Clínica em DST-AIDS, Instituto Nacional de Infectologia Evandro Chagas, FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Patricia Cuervo
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Leishmanioses, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | - Mariana C Boité
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Leishmanioses, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Renato Porrozzi
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Leishmanioses, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Elisa Cupolillo
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Leishmanioses, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Abstract
Understanding and controlling the spread of antimalarial resistance, particularly to artemisinin and its partner drugs, is a top priority. Plasmodium falciparum parasites resistant to chloroquine, amodiaquine, or piperaquine harbor mutations in the P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT), a transporter resident on the digestive vacuole membrane that in its variant forms can transport these weak-base 4-aminoquinoline drugs out of this acidic organelle, thus preventing these drugs from binding heme and inhibiting its detoxification. The structure of PfCRT, solved by cryogenic electron microscopy, shows mutations surrounding an electronegative central drug-binding cavity where they presumably interact with drugs and natural substrates to control transport. P. falciparum susceptibility to heme-binding antimalarials is also modulated by overexpression or mutations in the digestive vacuole membrane-bound ABC transporter PfMDR1 (P. falciparum multidrug resistance 1 transporter). Artemisinin resistance is primarily mediated by mutations in P. falciparum Kelch13 protein (K13), a protein involved in multiple intracellular processes including endocytosis of hemoglobin, which is required for parasite growth and artemisinin activation. Combating drug-resistant malaria urgently requires the development of new antimalarial drugs with novel modes of action.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn J Wicht
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York 10032, USA; , ,
| | - Sachel Mok
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York 10032, USA; , ,
| | - David A Fidock
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York 10032, USA; , , .,Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York 10032, USA
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Okombo J, Kanai M, Deni I, Fidock DA. Genomic and Genetic Approaches to Studying Antimalarial Drug Resistance and Plasmodium Biology. Trends Parasitol 2021; 37:476-492. [PMID: 33715941 PMCID: PMC8162148 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2021.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Revised: 02/11/2021] [Accepted: 02/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Recent progress in genomics and molecular genetics has empowered novel approaches to study gene functions in disease-causing pathogens. In the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, the application of genome-based analyses, site-directed genome editing, and genetic systems that allow for temporal and quantitative regulation of gene and protein expression have been invaluable in defining the genetic basis of antimalarial resistance and elucidating candidate targets to accelerate drug discovery efforts. Using examples from recent studies, we review applications of some of these approaches in advancing our understanding of Plasmodium biology and illustrate their contributions and limitations in characterizing parasite genomic loci associated with antimalarial drug responses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- John Okombo
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mariko Kanai
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ioanna Deni
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - David A Fidock
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA; Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Abstract
Malaria contributes to the most widespread infectious diseases worldwide. Even though current drugs are commercially available, the ever-increasing drug resistance problem by malaria parasites poses new challenges in malaria therapy. Hence, searching for efficient therapeutic strategies is of high priority in malaria control. In recent years, multi-omics technologies have been extensively applied to provide a more holistic view of functional principles and dynamics of biological mechanisms. We briefly review multi-omics technologies and focus on recent malaria progress conducted with the help of various omics methods. Then, we present up-to-date advances for multi-omics approaches in malaria. Next, we describe resistance phenomena to established antimalarial drugs and underlying mechanisms. Finally, we provide insight into novel multi-omics approaches, new drugs and vaccine developments and analyze current gaps in multi-omics research. Although multi-omics approaches have been successfully used in malaria studies, they are still limited. Many gaps need to be filled to bridge the gap between basic research and treatment of malaria patients. Multi-omics approaches will foster a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of Plasmodium that are essential for the development of novel drugs and vaccines to fight this disastrous disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Min Zhou
- Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Institute of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, Johannes Gutenberg University, Staudinger Weg 5, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Ayşegül Varol
- Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Institute of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, Johannes Gutenberg University, Staudinger Weg 5, 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Thomas Efferth
- Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Institute of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, Johannes Gutenberg University, Staudinger Weg 5, 55128 Mainz, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Hassett MR, Roepe PD. In vitro growth competition experiments that suggest consequences of the substandard artemisinin epidemic that may be accelerating drug resistance in P. falciparum malaria. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0248057. [PMID: 33690638 PMCID: PMC7942984 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0248057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2020] [Accepted: 02/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the past decade, artemisinin (ART)-combination therapies (ACTs) have shown declining efficacy within Southeast Asia (SEA). These resistance-like phenomena manifest as a delayed clearance phenotype (DCP) in some patients treated with ACTs. ACTs are currently the recommended treatment for P. falciparum infections by the World Health Organization (WHO), and they are our last line of defense to effectively treat all strains of malaria. Acceleration of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is often theorized to be exacerbated by the use of subtherapeutic dosages of drugs ("substandard" drug), which for ACTs has been well documented over the last decade. Troublingly, in 2017, the WHO estimated that nearly 1 in 10 medical products tested in low- and middle-income countries failed to meet quality standards. We have developed a tissue culture-based approach for testing possible connections between substandard treatment and the spread of ACT resistant blood stage forms of P. falciparum. Via sequencing of pfk13, a molecular marker that is predictive for ART resistance (ARTR), we monitor competition of sensitive vs resistant strains over time and under various conditions and define conditions that favor emergence of ARTR parasites. Our findings help to define the conditions under which substandard drug treatments might favor the proliferation of mutant PfK13-mediated drug resistant strains over drug sensitive.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R. Hassett
- Dept. of Chemistry and Dept. of Biochemistry & Cellular & Molecular Biology, Georgetown University (MRH, PDR), Washington, DC, United States of America
| | - Paul D. Roepe
- Dept. of Chemistry and Dept. of Biochemistry & Cellular & Molecular Biology, Georgetown University (MRH, PDR), Washington, DC, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Fisher GM, Cobbold SA, Jezewski A, Carpenter EF, Arnold M, Cowell AN, Tjhin ET, Saliba KJ, Skinner-Adams TS, Lee MCS, Odom John A, Winzeler EA, McConville MJ, Poulsen SA, Andrews KT. The Key Glycolytic Enzyme Phosphofructokinase Is Involved in Resistance to Antiplasmodial Glycosides. mBio 2020; 11:e02842-20. [PMID: 33293381 DOI: 10.1128/mBio.02842-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Malaria, caused by Plasmodium parasites, continues to be a devastating global health issue, causing 405,000 deaths and 228 million cases in 2018. Understanding key metabolic processes in malaria parasites is critical to the development of new drugs to combat this major infectious disease. The Plasmodium glycolytic pathway is essential to the malaria parasite, providing energy for growth and replication and supplying important biomolecules for other essential Plasmodium anabolic pathways. Despite this overreliance on glycolysis, no current drugs target glycolysis, and there is a paucity of information on critical glycolysis targets. Our work addresses this unmet need, providing new mechanistic insights into this key pathway. Plasmodium parasites rely heavily on glycolysis for ATP production and for precursors for essential anabolic pathways, such as the methylerythritol phosphate (MEP) pathway. Here, we show that mutations in the Plasmodium falciparum glycolytic enzyme, phosphofructokinase (PfPFK9), are associated with in vitro resistance to a primary sulfonamide glycoside (PS-3). Flux through the upper glycolysis pathway was significantly reduced in PS-3-resistant parasites, which was associated with reduced ATP levels but increased flux into the pentose phosphate pathway. PS-3 may directly or indirectly target enzymes in these pathways, as PS-3-treated parasites had elevated levels of glycolytic and tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle intermediates. PS-3 resistance also led to reduced MEP pathway intermediates, and PS-3-resistant parasites were hypersensitive to the MEP pathway inhibitor, fosmidomycin. Overall, this study suggests that PS-3 disrupts core pathways in central carbon metabolism, which is compensated for by mutations in PfPFK9, highlighting a novel metabolic drug resistance mechanism in P. falciparum.
Collapse
|
21
|
Vendrely KM, Kumar S, Li X, Vaughan AM. Humanized Mice and the Rebirth of Malaria Genetic Crosses. Trends Parasitol 2020; 36:850-863. [PMID: 32891493 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2020.07.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2020] [Revised: 07/10/2020] [Accepted: 07/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The first experimental crosses carried out with the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum played a key role in determining the genetic loci responsible for drug resistance, virulence, invasion, growth rate, and transmission. These crosses relied on splenectomized chimpanzees to complete the liver stage of the parasite's life cycle and the subsequent transition to asexual blood stage culture followed by cloning of recombinant progeny in vitro. Crosses can now be routinely carried out using human-liver-chimeric mice infused with human erythrocytes to generate hundreds of unique recombinant progeny for genetic linkage mapping, bulk segregant analysis, and high-throughput 'omics readouts. The high number of recombinant progeny should allow for unprecedented power and efficiency in the execution of a systems genetics approach to study P. falciparum biology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Katelyn M Vendrely
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Sudhir Kumar
- Center for Global Infectious Disease Research, Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Xue Li
- Disease Intervention and Prevention Program, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Ashley M Vaughan
- Center for Global Infectious Disease Research, Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Shafik SH, Cobbold SA, Barkat K, Richards SN, Lancaster NS, Llinás M, Hogg SJ, Summers RL, McConville MJ, Martin RE. The natural function of the malaria parasite's chloroquine resistance transporter. Nat Commun 2020; 11:3922. [PMID: 32764664 PMCID: PMC7413254 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-17781-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2019] [Accepted: 07/15/2020] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
The Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) is a key contributor to multidrug resistance and is also essential for the survival of the malaria parasite, yet its natural function remains unresolved. We identify host-derived peptides of 4-11 residues, varying in both charge and composition, as the substrates of PfCRT in vitro and in situ, and show that PfCRT does not mediate the non-specific transport of other metabolites and/or ions. We find that drug-resistance-conferring mutations reduce both the peptide transport capacity and substrate range of PfCRT, explaining the impaired fitness of drug-resistant parasites. Our results indicate that PfCRT transports peptides from the lumen of the parasite's digestive vacuole to the cytosol, thereby providing a source of amino acids for parasite metabolism and preventing osmotic stress of this organelle. The resolution of PfCRT's native substrates will aid the development of drugs that target PfCRT and/or restore the efficacy of existing antimalarials.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sarah H Shafik
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Simon A Cobbold
- Bio21 Molecular Science and Biotechnology Institute, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3052, Australia
| | - Kawthar Barkat
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Sashika N Richards
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Nicole S Lancaster
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Manuel Llinás
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Department of Chemistry, and Huck Center for Malaria Research, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA
| | - Simon J Hogg
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Robert L Summers
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Malcolm J McConville
- Bio21 Molecular Science and Biotechnology Institute, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3052, Australia
| | - Rowena E Martin
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Riegel B, Roepe PD. Altered Drug Transport by Plasmodium falciparum Chloroquine Resistance Transporter Isoforms Harboring Mutations Associated with Piperaquine Resistance. Biochemistry 2020; 59:2484-2493. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.0c00247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bryce Riegel
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. 20057, United States
| | - Paul D. Roepe
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. 20057, United States
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Abstract
Plasmepsins are a group of diverse aspartic proteases in the malaria parasite Plasmodium Their functions are strikingly multifaceted, ranging from hemoglobin degradation to secretory organelle protein processing for egress, invasion, and effector export. Some, particularly the digestive vacuole plasmepsins, have been extensively characterized, whereas others, such as the transmission-stage plasmepsins, are minimally understood. Some (e.g. plasmepsin V) have exquisite cleavage sequence specificity; others are fairly promiscuous. Some have canonical pepsin-like aspartic protease features, whereas others have unusual attributes, including the nepenthesin loop of plasmepsin V and a histidine in place of a catalytic aspartate in plasmepsin III. We have learned much about the functioning of these enzymes, but more remains to be discovered about their cellular roles and even their mechanisms of action. Their importance in many key aspects of parasite biology makes them intriguing targets for antimalarial chemotherapy. Further consideration of their characteristics suggests that some are more viable drug targets than others. Indeed, inhibitors of invasion and egress offer hope for a desperately needed new drug to combat this nefarious organism.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Armiyaw S Nasamu
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Departments of Medicine and Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Alexander J Polino
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Departments of Medicine and Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Eva S Istvan
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Departments of Medicine and Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Daniel E Goldberg
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Departments of Medicine and Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Coppée R, Sabbagh A, Clain J. Structural and evolutionary analyses of the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter. Sci Rep 2020; 10:4842. [PMID: 32179795 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-61181-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2019] [Accepted: 02/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Mutations in the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) confer resistance to several antimalarial drugs such as chloroquine (CQ) or piperaquine (PPQ), a partner molecule in current artemisinin-based combination therapies. As a member of the Drug/Metabolite Transporter (DMT) superfamily, the vacuolar transporter PfCRT may translocate substrate molecule(s) across the membrane of the digestive vacuole (DV), a lysosome-like organelle. However, the physiological substrate(s), the transport mechanism and the functional regions of PfCRT remain to be fully characterized. Here, we hypothesized that identification of evolutionary conserved sites in a tertiary structural context could help locate putative functional regions of PfCRT. Hence, site-specific substitution rates were estimated over Plasmodium evolution at each amino acid sites, and the PfCRT tertiary structure was predicted in both inward-facing (open-to-vacuole) and occluded states through homology modeling using DMT template structures sharing <15% sequence identity with PfCRT. We found that the vacuolar-half and membrane-spanning domain (and especially the transmembrane helix 9) of PfCRT were more conserved, supporting that its physiological substrate is expelled out of the parasite DV. In the PfCRT occluded state, some evolutionary conserved sites, including positions related to drug resistance mutations, participate in a putative binding pocket located at the core of the PfCRT membrane-spanning domain. Through structural comparison with experimentally-characterized DMT transporters, we identified several conserved PfCRT amino acid sites located in this pocket as robust candidates for mediating substrate transport. Finally, in silico mutagenesis revealed that drug resistance mutations caused drastic changes in the electrostatic potential of the transporter vacuolar entry and pocket, facilitating the escape of protonated CQ and PPQ from the parasite DV.
Collapse
|
26
|
Balikagala B, Sakurai-Yatsushiro M, Tachibana SI, Ikeda M, Yamauchi M, Katuro OT, Ntege EH, Sekihara M, Fukuda N, Takahashi N, Yatsushiro S, Mori T, Hirai M, Opio W, Obwoya PS, Anywar DA, Auma MA, Palacpac NMQ, Tsuboi T, Odongo-Aginya EI, Kimura E, Ogwang M, Horii T, Mita T. Recovery and stable persistence of chloroquine sensitivity in Plasmodium falciparum parasites after its discontinued use in Northern Uganda. Malar J 2020; 19:76. [PMID: 32070358 PMCID: PMC7026951 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-020-03157-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2019] [Accepted: 02/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Usage of chloroquine was discontinued from the treatment of Plasmodium falciparum infection in almost all endemic regions because of global spread of resistant parasites. Since the first report in Malawi, numerous epidemiological studies have demonstrated that the discontinuance led to re-emergence of chloroquine-susceptible P. falciparum, suggesting a possible role in future malaria control. However, most studies were cross-sectional, with few studies looking at the persistence of chloroquine recovery in long term. This study fills the gap by providing, for a period of at least 6 years, proof of persistent re-emergence/stable recovery of susceptible parasite populations using both molecular and phenotypic methods. Methods Ex vivo drug-susceptibility assays to chloroquine (n = 319) and lumefantrine (n = 335) were performed from 2013 to 2018 in Gulu, Northern Uganda, where chloroquine had been removed from the official malaria treatment regimen since 2006. Genotyping of pfcrt and pfmdr1 was also performed. Results Chloroquine resistance (≥ 100 nM) was observed in only 3 (1.3%) samples. Average IC50 values for chloroquine were persistently low throughout the study period (17.4–24.9 nM). Parasites harbouring pfcrt K76 alleles showed significantly lower IC50s to chloroquine than the parasites harbouring K76T alleles (21.4 nM vs. 43.1 nM, p-value = 3.9 × 10−8). Prevalence of K76 alleles gradually increased from 71% in 2013 to 100% in 2018. Conclusion This study found evidence of stable persistence of chloroquine susceptibility with the fixation of pfcrt K76 in Northern Uganda after discontinuation of chloroquine in the region. Accumulation of similar evidence in other endemic areas in Uganda could open channels for possible future re-use of chloroquine as an option for malaria treatment or prevention.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Betty Balikagala
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Miki Sakurai-Yatsushiro
- Department of International Affairs and Tropical Medicine, School of Medicine, Tokyo Women's Medical University, 8-1 Kawada-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 162-8666, Japan
| | - Shin-Ichiro Tachibana
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Mie Ikeda
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Masato Yamauchi
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Osbert T Katuro
- Mildmay Uganda, Nazibwa Hill, Lweza, P.O. Box 24985, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Edward H Ntege
- Division of Malaria Research, Proteo-Science Center, Ehime University, 3 Bunkyo-cho, Matsuyama, Ehime, 790-8577, Japan
| | - Makoto Sekihara
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Naoyuki Fukuda
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Nobuyuki Takahashi
- Department of International Affairs and Tropical Medicine, School of Medicine, Tokyo Women's Medical University, 8-1 Kawada-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 162-8666, Japan
| | - Shouki Yatsushiro
- Health Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), 2217-14 Hayashi-cho, Takamatsu, Kagawa, 761-0395, Japan
| | - Toshiyuki Mori
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Makoto Hirai
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Walter Opio
- St. Mary's Hospital Lacor, P.O. Box 180, Gulu, Uganda
| | - Paul S Obwoya
- St. Mary's Hospital Lacor, P.O. Box 180, Gulu, Uganda
| | - Denis A Anywar
- Faculty of Science, Gulu University, P.O. Box 166, Gulu, Uganda
| | - Mary A Auma
- St. Mary's Hospital Lacor, P.O. Box 180, Gulu, Uganda
| | - Nirianne M Q Palacpac
- Department of Malaria Vaccine Development, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, 3 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Takafumi Tsuboi
- Division of Malaria Research, Proteo-Science Center, Ehime University, 3 Bunkyo-cho, Matsuyama, Ehime, 790-8577, Japan
| | | | - Eisaku Kimura
- Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, 1-12-4 Sakamoto, Nagasaki, Nagasaki, 852-8523, Japan
| | - Martin Ogwang
- St. Mary's Hospital Lacor, P.O. Box 180, Gulu, Uganda
| | - Toshihiro Horii
- Department of Malaria Vaccine Development, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, 3 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Toshihiro Mita
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Davis SZ, Singh PP, Vendrely KM, Shoue DA, Checkley LA, McDew-White M, Button-Simons KA, Cassady Z, Sievert MAC, Foster GJ, Nosten FH, Anderson TJC, Ferdig MT. The extended recovery ring-stage survival assay provides a superior association with patient clearance half-life and increases throughput. Malar J 2020; 19:54. [PMID: 32005233 PMCID: PMC6995136 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-020-3139-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2019] [Accepted: 01/24/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Tracking and understanding artemisinin resistance is key for preventing global setbacks in malaria eradication efforts. The ring-stage survival assay (RSA) is the current gold standard for in vitro artemisinin resistance phenotyping. However, the RSA has several drawbacks: it is relatively low throughput, has high variance due to microscopy readout, and correlates poorly with the current benchmark for in vivo resistance, patient clearance half-life post-artemisinin treatment. Here a modified RSA is presented, the extended Recovery Ring-stage Survival Assay (eRRSA), using 15 cloned patient isolates from Southeast Asia with a range of patient clearance half-lives, including parasite isolates with and without kelch13 mutations. METHODS Plasmodium falciparum cultures were synchronized with single layer Percoll during the schizont stage of the intraerythrocytic development cycle. Cultures were left to reinvade to early ring-stage and parasitaemia was quantified using flow cytometry. Cultures were diluted to 2% haematocrit and 0.5% parasitaemia in a 96-well plate to start the assay, allowing for increased throughput and decreased variability between biological replicates. Parasites were treated with 700 nM of dihydroartemisinin or 0.02% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) for 6 h, washed three times in drug-free media, and incubated for 66 or 114 h, when samples were collected and frozen for PCR amplification. A SYBR Green-based quantitative PCR method was used to quantify the fold-change between treated and untreated samples. RESULTS 15 cloned patient isolates from Southeast Asia with a range of patient clearance half-lives were assayed using the eRRSA. Due to the large number of pyknotic and dying parasites at 66 h post-exposure (72 h sample), parasites were grown for an additional cell cycle (114 h post-exposure, 120 h sample), which drastically improved correlation with patient clearance half-life compared to the 66 h post-exposure sample. A Spearman correlation of - 0.8393 between fold change and patient clearance half-life was identified in these 15 isolates from Southeast Asia, which is the strongest correlation reported to date. CONCLUSIONS eRRSA drastically increases the efficiency and accuracy of in vitro artemisinin resistance phenotyping compared to the traditional RSA, which paves the way for extensive in vitro phenotyping of hundreds of artemisinin resistant parasites.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sage Z Davis
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA.,Molecular, Cell, and Systems Biology Department, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA
| | - Puspendra P Singh
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Katelyn M Vendrely
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Douglas A Shoue
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Lisa A Checkley
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | | | - Katrina A Button-Simons
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Zione Cassady
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Mackenzie A C Sievert
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Gabriel J Foster
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - François H Nosten
- Shoklo Malaria Research Unit, Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, Mahidol University, Mae Sot, Thailand.,Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine Research Building, University of Oxford Old Road Campus, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Michael T Ferdig
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Siddiqui FA, Cabrera M, Wang M, Brashear A, Kemirembe K, Wang Z, Miao J, Chookajorn T, Yang Z, Cao Y, Dong G, Rosenthal PJ, Cui L. Plasmodium falciparum Falcipain-2a Polymorphisms in Southeast Asia and Their Association With Artemisinin Resistance. J Infect Dis 2019; 218:434-442. [PMID: 29659945 DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiy188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2018] [Accepted: 04/04/2018] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Falcipain-2a ([FP2a] PF3D7_1115700) is a Plasmodium falciparum cysteine protease and hemoglobinase. Functional FP2a is required for potent activity of artemisinin, and in vitro selection for artemisinin resistance selected for an FP2a nonsense mutation. Methods To investigate associations between FP2a polymorphisms and artemisinin resistance and to characterize the diversity of the enzyme in parasites from the China-Myanmar border, we sequenced the full-length FP2a gene in 140 P falciparum isolates collected during 2004-2011. Results The isolates were grouped into 8 different haplotype groups. Haplotype group I appeared in samples obtained after 2008, coinciding with implementation of artemisinin-based combination therapy in this region. In functional studies, compared with wild-type parasites, the FP2a haplotypes demonstrated increased ring survival, and all haplotype groups exhibited significantly reduced FP2a activity, with group I showing the slowest protease kinetics and reduced parasite fitness. Conclusions These results suggest that altered hemoglobin digestion due to FP2a mutations may contribute to artemisinin resistance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Faiza A Siddiqui
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park
| | - Mynthia Cabrera
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park
| | - Meilian Wang
- College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang
| | - Awtum Brashear
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park
| | - Karen Kemirembe
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park
| | - Zenglei Wang
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park
| | - Jun Miao
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park
| | - Thanat Chookajorn
- Genomics and Evolutionary Medicine Unit, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Zhaoqing Yang
- Department of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, Kunming Medical University, China
| | - Yaming Cao
- College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang
| | - Gang Dong
- Max F. Perutz Laboratories, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Liwang Cui
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Tirrell AR, Vendrely KM, Checkley LA, Davis SZ, McDew-White M, Cheeseman IH, Vaughan AM, Nosten FH, Anderson TJC, Ferdig MT. Pairwise growth competitions identify relative fitness relationships among artemisinin resistant Plasmodium falciparum field isolates. Malar J 2019; 18:295. [PMID: 31462253 PMCID: PMC6714446 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-019-2934-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2019] [Accepted: 08/23/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Competitive outcomes between co-infecting malaria parasite lines can reveal fitness disparities in blood stage growth. Blood stage fitness costs often accompany the evolution of drug resistance, with the expectation that relatively fitter parasites will be more likely to spread in populations. With the recent emergence of artemisinin resistance, it is important to understand the relative competitive fitness of the metabolically active asexual blood stage parasites. Genetically distinct drug resistant parasite clones with independently evolved sets of mutations are likely to vary in asexual proliferation rate, contributing to their chance of transmission to the mosquito vector. Methods An optimized in vitro 96-well plate-based protocol was used to quantitatively measure-head-to-head competitive fitness during blood stage development between seven genetically distinct field isolates from a hotspot of emerging artemisinin resistance and the laboratory strain, NF54. These field isolates were isolated from patients in Southeast Asia carrying different alleles of kelch13 and included both artemisinin-sensitive and artemisinin-resistant isolates. Fluorescent labeled microsatellite markers were used to track the relative densities of each parasite throughout the co-growth period of 14–60 days. All-on-all competitions were conducted for the panel of eight parasite lines (28 pairwise competitions) to determine their quantitative competitive fitness relationships. Results Twenty-eight pairwise competitive growth outcomes allowed for an unambiguous ranking among a set of seven genetically distinct parasite lines isolated from patients in Southeast Asia displaying a range of both kelch13 alleles and clinical clearance times and a laboratory strain, NF54. This comprehensive series of assays established the growth relationships among the eight parasite lines. Interestingly, a clinically artemisinin resistant parasite line that carries the wild-type form of kelch13 outcompeted all other parasites in this study. Furthermore, a kelch13 mutant line (E252Q) was competitively more fit without drug than lines with other resistance-associated kelch13 alleles, including the C580Y allele that has expanded to high frequencies under drug pressure in Southeast Asian resistant populations. Conclusions This optimized competitive growth assay can be employed for assessment of relative growth as an index of fitness during the asexual blood stage growth between natural lines carrying different genetic variants associated with artemisinin resistance. Improved understanding of the fitness costs of different parasites proliferating in human blood and the role different resistance mutations play in the context of specific genetic backgrounds will contribute to an understanding of the potential for specific mutations to spread in populations, with the potential to inform targeted strategies for malaria therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Abigail R Tirrell
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Katelyn M Vendrely
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Lisa A Checkley
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Sage Z Davis
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | | | | | | | - François H Nosten
- Shoklo Malaria Research Unit, Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, Mahidol University, Mae Sot, Thailand.,Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine Research Building, University of Oxford Old Road Campus, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Michael T Ferdig
- Eck Institute for Global Health, Dept. of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Sexton AE, Doerig C, Creek DJ, Carvalho TG. Post-Genomic Approaches to Understanding Malaria Parasite Biology: Linking Genes to Biological Functions. ACS Infect Dis 2019; 5:1269-1278. [PMID: 31243988 DOI: 10.1021/acsinfecdis.9b00093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Plasmodium species are evolutionarily distant from model eukaryotes, and as a consequence they exhibit many non-canonical cellular processes. In the post-genomic era, functional "omics" disciplines (transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics) have accelerated our understanding of unique aspects of the biology of malaria parasites. Functional "omics" tools, in combination with genetic manipulations, have offered new opportunities to investigate the function of previously uncharacterized genes. Knowledge of basic parasite biology is fundamental to understanding drug modes of action, mechanisms of drug resistance, and relevance of vaccine candidates. This Perspective highlights recent "omics"-based discoveries in basic biology and gene function of the most virulent human malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna E. Sexton
- Drug Delivery Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, 381 Royal Parade, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Christian Doerig
- Centre for Chronic, Inflammatory and Infectious Diseases, Biomedical Sciences Cluster, School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, 264 Plenty Road, Bundoora, VIC 3083, Australia
| | - Darren J. Creek
- Drug Delivery Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, 381 Royal Parade, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Teresa G. Carvalho
- Molecular Parasitology Laboratory, Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Microbiology, La Trobe University, Kingsbury Drive, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Su XZ, Lane KD, Xia L, Sá JM, Wellems TE. Plasmodium Genomics and Genetics: New Insights into Malaria Pathogenesis, Drug Resistance, Epidemiology, and Evolution. Clin Microbiol Rev 2019; 32:e00019-19. [PMID: 31366610 DOI: 10.1128/CMR.00019-19] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Protozoan Plasmodium parasites are the causative agents of malaria, a deadly disease that continues to afflict hundreds of millions of people every year. Infections with malaria parasites can be asymptomatic, with mild or severe symptoms, or fatal, depending on many factors such as parasite virulence and host immune status. Malaria can be treated with various drugs, with artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) being the first-line choice. Recent advances in genetics and genomics of malaria parasites have contributed greatly to our understanding of parasite population dynamics, transmission, drug responses, and pathogenesis. However, knowledge gaps in parasite biology and host-parasite interactions still remain. Parasites resistant to multiple antimalarial drugs have emerged, while advanced clinical trials have shown partial efficacy for one available vaccine. Here we discuss genetic and genomic studies of Plasmodium biology, host-parasite interactions, population structures, mosquito infectivity, antigenic variation, and targets for treatment and immunization. Knowledge from these studies will advance our understanding of malaria pathogenesis, epidemiology, and evolution and will support work to discover and develop new medicines and vaccines.
Collapse
|
32
|
Thornton LB, Teehan P, Floyd K, Cochrane C, Bergmann A, Riegel B, Stasic AJ, Di Cristina M, Moreno SNJ, Roepe PD, Dou Z. An ortholog of Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) plays a key role in maintaining the integrity of the endolysosomal system in Toxoplasma gondii to facilitate host invasion. PLoS Pathog 2019; 15:e1007775. [PMID: 31170269 PMCID: PMC6553793 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1007775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2018] [Accepted: 04/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is an apicomplexan parasite with the ability to use foodborne, zoonotic, and congenital routes of transmission that causes severe disease in immunocompromised patients. The parasites harbor a lysosome-like organelle, termed the "Vacuolar Compartment/Plant-Like Vacuole" (VAC/PLV), which plays an important role in maintaining the lytic cycle and virulence of T. gondii. The VAC supplies proteolytic enzymes that contribute to the maturation of invasion effectors and that digest autophagosomes and endocytosed host proteins. Previous work identified a T. gondii ortholog of the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) that localized to the VAC. Here, we show that TgCRT is a membrane transporter that is functionally similar to PfCRT. We also genetically ablate TgCRT and reveal that the TgCRT protein plays a key role in maintaining the integrity of the parasite’s endolysosomal system by controlling morphology of the VAC. When TgCRT is absent, the VAC dramatically increases in volume by ~15-fold and overlaps with adjacent endosome-like compartments. Presumably to reduce aberrant swelling, transcription and translation of endolysosomal proteases are decreased in ΔTgCRT parasites. Expression of subtilisin protease 1 is significantly reduced, which impedes trimming of microneme proteins, and significantly decreases parasite invasion. Chemical or genetic inhibition of proteolysis within the VAC reverses these effects, reducing VAC size and partially restoring integrity of the endolysosomal system, microneme protein trimming, and invasion. Taken together, these findings reveal for the first time a physiological role of TgCRT in substrate transport that impacts VAC volume and the integrity of the endolysosomal system in T. gondii. Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite that belongs to the phylum Apicomplexa and that infects virtually all warm-blooded organisms. Approximately one-third of the human population is infected with Toxoplasma. Toxoplasma invades host cells using processed invasion effectors. A lysosome-like organelle (VAC) is involved in refining these invasion effectors to reach their final forms. A T. gondii ortholog of the malarial chloroquine resistance transporter protein (TgCRT) was found to be localized to the VAC membrane. Although the mutated version of the malarial chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) has been shown to confer resistance to chloroquine treatment, its physiologic function remains poorly understood. Comparison between the related PfCRT and TgCRT facilitates definition of the physiologic role of CRT proteins. Here, we report that TgCRT plays a key role in affecting the integrity and proteolytic activity of the VAC and adjacent organelles, the secretion of invasion effectors, and parasite invasion and virulence. To relieve osmotic stress caused by VAC swelling when TgCRT is deleted, parasites repress proteolysis within this organelle to decrease solute accumulation, which then has secondary effects on parasite invasion. Our findings highlight a common function for PfCRT and TgCRT in mediating small solute transport to affect apicomplexan parasite vacuolar size and function.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- L. Brock Thornton
- Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, United States of America
| | - Paige Teehan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, United States of America
| | - Katherine Floyd
- Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, United States of America
| | - Christian Cochrane
- Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, United States of America
| | - Amy Bergmann
- Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, United States of America
| | - Bryce Riegel
- Department of Chemistry, Georgetown University, NW, Washington DC, United States of America
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular & Cellular Biology, Georgetown University, NW, Washington DC, United States of America
| | - Andrew J. Stasic
- Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States of America
- Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Manlio Di Cristina
- Department of Chemistry, Biology and Biotechnology, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
| | - Silvia N. J. Moreno
- Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States of America
- Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Paul D. Roepe
- Department of Chemistry, Georgetown University, NW, Washington DC, United States of America
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular & Cellular Biology, Georgetown University, NW, Washington DC, United States of America
| | - Zhicheng Dou
- Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Dhingra SK, Gabryszewski SJ, Small-Saunders JL, Yeo T, Henrich PP, Mok S, Fidock DA. Global Spread of Mutant PfCRT and Its Pleiotropic Impact on Plasmodium falciparum Multidrug Resistance and Fitness. mBio 2019; 10:e02731-18. [PMID: 31040246 PMCID: PMC6495381 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.02731-18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2018] [Accepted: 03/25/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The global spread of Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) variant haplotypes earlier caused the widespread loss of chloroquine (CQ) efficacy. In Asia, novel PfCRT mutations that emerged on the Dd2 allelic background have recently been implicated in high-level resistance to piperaquine, and N326S and I356T have been associated with genetic backgrounds in which resistance emerged to artemisinin derivatives. By analyzing large-scale genome sequencing data, we report that the predominant Asian CQ-resistant Dd2 haplotype is undetectable in Africa. Instead, the GB4 and previously unexplored Cam783 haplotypes predominate, along with wild-type, drug-sensitive PfCRT that has reemerged as the major haplotype. To interrogate how these alleles impact drug susceptibility, we generated pfcrt-modified isogenic parasite lines spanning the mutational interval between GB4 and Dd2, which includes Cam783 and involves amino acid substitutions at residues 326 and 356. Relative to Dd2, the GB4 and Cam783 alleles were observed to mediate lower degrees of resistance to CQ and the first-line drug amodiaquine, while resulting in higher growth rates. These findings suggest that differences in growth rates, a surrogate of parasite fitness, influence selection in the context of African infections that are frequently characterized by high transmission rates, mixed infections, increased immunity, and less recourse to treatment. We also observe that the Asian Dd2 allele affords partial protection against piperaquine yet does not directly impact artemisinin efficacy. Our results can help inform the regional recommendations of antimalarials, whose activity is influenced by and, in certain cases, enhanced against select PfCRT variant haplotypes.IMPORTANCE Our study defines the allelic distribution of pfcrt, an important mediator of multidrug resistance in Plasmodium falciparum, in Africa and Asia. We leveraged whole-genome sequence analysis and gene editing to demonstrate how current drug combinations can select different allelic variants of this gene and shape region-specific parasite population structures. We document the ability of PfCRT mutations to modulate parasite susceptibility to current antimalarials in dissimilar, pfcrt allele-specific ways. This study underscores the importance of actively monitoring pfcrt genotypes to identify emerging patterns of multidrug resistance and help guide region-specific treatment options.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Satish K Dhingra
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - Stanislaw J Gabryszewski
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - Jennifer L Small-Saunders
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - Tomas Yeo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - Philipp P Henrich
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - Sachel Mok
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| | - David A Fidock
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Heller LE, Goggins E, Roepe PD. Dihydroartemisinin-Ferriprotoporphyrin IX Adduct Abundance in Plasmodium falciparum Malarial Parasites and the Relationship to Emerging Artemisinin Resistance. Biochemistry 2018; 57:6935-6945. [PMID: 30512926 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.8b00960] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Previously (Heller, L. E., and Roepe, P. D. Quantification of Free Ferriprotoporphyrin IX Heme and Hemozoin for Artemisinin Sensitive versus Delayed Clearance Phenotype Plasmodium falciparum Malarial Parasites. Biochemistry, DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.8b00959, preceding paper in this issue), we quantified free ferriprotoporphyrin IX (FPIX) heme abundance for control versus delayed clearance phenotype (DCP) intraerythrocytic Plasmodium falciparum malarial parasites. Because artemisinin drugs are activated by free FPIX, these data predict that the abundance of long-hypothesized toxic artemisinin drug-FPIX covalent adducts might differ for control versus DCP parasites. If so, this would have important repercussions for understanding the mechanism of the DCP, also known as emerging artemisinin resistance. To test these predictions, we studied in vitro formation of FPIX-dihydroartemisinin (DHA) adducts and then for the first time quantified the abundance of FPIX-DHA adducts formed within live P. falciparum versus the stage of intraerythrocytic development. Using matched isogenic parasite strains, we quantified the adduct for DCP versus control parasite strains and found that mutant PfK13 mediates lower adduct abundance for DCP parasites. The results suggest improved models for the molecular pharmacology of artemisinin-based antimalarial drugs and the molecular mechanism of the DCP.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Laura E Heller
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology , Georgetown University , 37th and O Streets Northwest , Washington, D.C. 20057 , United States
| | - Eibhlin Goggins
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology , Georgetown University , 37th and O Streets Northwest , Washington, D.C. 20057 , United States
| | - Paul D Roepe
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology , Georgetown University , 37th and O Streets Northwest , Washington, D.C. 20057 , United States
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Sekihara M, Tachibana SI, Yamauchi M, Yatsushiro S, Tiwara S, Fukuda N, Ikeda M, Mori T, Hirai M, Hombhanje F, Mita T. Lack of significant recovery of chloroquine sensitivity in Plasmodium falciparum parasites following discontinuance of chloroquine use in Papua New Guinea. Malar J 2018; 17:434. [PMID: 30477515 PMCID: PMC6260888 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-018-2585-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2018] [Accepted: 11/21/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Chloroquine treatment for Plasmodium falciparum has been discontinued in almost all endemic regions due to the spread of resistant isolates. Reversal of chloroquine susceptibility after chloroquine discontinuation has been reported in dozens of endemic regions. However, this phenomenon has been mostly observed in Africa and is not well documented in other malaria endemic regions. To investigate this, an ex vivo study on susceptibility to chloroquine and lumefantrine was conducted during 2016–2018 in Wewak, Papua New Guinea where chloroquine had been removed from the official malaria treatment regimen in 2010. Genotyping of pfcrt and pfmdr1 was also performed. Results In total, 368 patients were enrolled in this study. Average IC50 values for chloroquine were 106.6, 80.5, and 87.6 nM in 2016, 2017, and 2018, respectively. These values were not significantly changed from those obtained in 2002/2003 (108 nM). The majority of parasites harboured a pfcrt K76T the mutation responsible for chloroquine resistance. However, a significant upward trend was observed in the frequency of the K76 (wild) allele from 2.3% in 2016 to 11.7% in 2018 (P = 0.008; Cochran–Armitage trend test). Conclusions Eight years of chloroquine withdrawal has not induced a significant recovery of susceptibility in Papua New Guinea. However, an increasing tendency of parasites harbouring chloroquine-susceptible K76 suggests a possibility of resurgence of chloroquine susceptibility in the future. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12936-018-2585-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Makoto Sekihara
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Juntendo University, Faculty of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan
| | - Shin-Ichiro Tachibana
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Juntendo University, Faculty of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan
| | - Masato Yamauchi
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Juntendo University, Faculty of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan
| | - Shoki Yatsushiro
- Health Technology Research Center, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Takamatsu, Japan
| | - Steven Tiwara
- Wewak General Hospital, Wewak, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea
| | - Naoyuki Fukuda
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Juntendo University, Faculty of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan
| | - Mie Ikeda
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Juntendo University, Faculty of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan
| | - Toshiyuki Mori
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Juntendo University, Faculty of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan
| | - Makoto Hirai
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Juntendo University, Faculty of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan
| | - Francis Hombhanje
- Centre for Health Research & Diagnostics, Divine Word University, P.O. Box 483, Madang, Papua New Guinea
| | - Toshihiro Mita
- Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Juntendo University, Faculty of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Lee AH, Dhingra SK, Lewis IA, Singh MK, Siriwardana A, Dalal S, Rubiano K, Klein MS, Baska KS, Krishna S, Klemba M, Roepe PD, Llinás M, Garcia CRS, Fidock DA. Evidence for Regulation of Hemoglobin Metabolism and Intracellular Ionic Flux by the Plasmodium falciparum Chloroquine Resistance Transporter. Sci Rep 2018; 8:13578. [PMID: 30206341 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-31715-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2018] [Accepted: 08/22/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Plasmodium falciparum multidrug resistance constitutes a major obstacle to the global malaria elimination campaign. Specific mutations in the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) mediate resistance to the 4-aminoquinoline drug chloroquine and impact parasite susceptibility to several partner agents used in current artemisinin-based combination therapies, including amodiaquine. By examining gene-edited parasites, we report that the ability of the wide-spread Dd2 PfCRT isoform to mediate chloroquine and amodiaquine resistance is substantially reduced by the addition of the PfCRT L272F mutation, which arose under blasticidin selection. We also provide evidence that L272F confers a significant fitness cost to asexual blood stage parasites. Studies with amino acid-restricted media identify this mutant as a methionine auxotroph. Metabolomic analysis also reveals an accumulation of short, hemoglobin-derived peptides in the Dd2 + L272F and Dd2 isoforms, compared with parasites expressing wild-type PfCRT. Physiologic studies with the ionophores monensin and nigericin support an impact of PfCRT isoforms on Ca2+ release, with substantially reduced Ca2+ levels observed in Dd2 + L272F parasites. Our data reveal a central role for PfCRT in regulating hemoglobin catabolism, amino acid availability, and ionic balance in P. falciparum, in addition to its role in determining parasite susceptibility to heme-binding 4-aminoquinoline drugs.
Collapse
|
37
|
Anderson TJC, LoVerde PT, Le Clec'h W, Chevalier FD. Genetic Crosses and Linkage Mapping in Schistosome Parasites. Trends Parasitol 2018; 34:982-996. [PMID: 30150002 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2018.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2018] [Revised: 07/27/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Linkage mapping - utilizing experimental genetic crosses to examine cosegregation of phenotypic traits with genetic markers - is now 100 years old. Schistosome parasites are exquisitely well suited to linkage mapping approaches because genetic crosses can be conducted in the laboratory, thousands of progeny are produced, and elegant experimental work over the last 75 years has revealed heritable genetic variation in multiple biomedically important traits such as drug resistance, host specificity, and virulence. Application of this approach is timely because the improved genome assembly for Schistosoma mansoni and developing molecular toolkit for schistosomes increase our ability to link phenotype with genotype. We describe current progress and potential future directions of linkage mapping in schistosomes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Winka Le Clec'h
- Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas 78227, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
38
|
Ross LS, Dhingra SK, Mok S, Yeo T, Wicht KJ, Kümpornsin K, Takala-Harrison S, Witkowski B, Fairhurst RM, Ariey F, Menard D, Fidock DA. Emerging Southeast Asian PfCRT mutations confer Plasmodium falciparum resistance to the first-line antimalarial piperaquine. Nat Commun 2018; 9:3314. [PMID: 30115924 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-05652-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 160] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2018] [Accepted: 07/11/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The widely used antimalarial combination therapy dihydroartemisinin + piperaquine (DHA + PPQ) has failed in Cambodia. Here, we perform a genomic analysis that reveals a rapid increase in the prevalence of novel mutations in the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter PfCRT following DHA + PPQ implementation. These mutations occur in parasites harboring the K13 C580Y artemisinin resistance marker. By introducing PfCRT mutations into sensitive Dd2 parasites or removing them from resistant Cambodian isolates, we show that the H97Y, F145I, M343L, or G353V mutations each confer resistance to PPQ, albeit with fitness costs for all but M343L. These mutations sensitize Dd2 parasites to chloroquine, amodiaquine, and quinine. In Dd2 parasites, multicopy plasmepsin 2, a candidate molecular marker, is not necessary for PPQ resistance. Distended digestive vacuoles were observed in pfcrt-edited Dd2 parasites but not in Cambodian isolates. Our findings provide compelling evidence that emerging mutations in PfCRT can serve as a molecular marker and mediator of PPQ resistance. Increasing resistance of Plasmodium falciparum strains to piperaquine (PPQ) in Southeast Asia is of concern and resistance mechanisms are incompletely understood. Here, Ross et al. show that mutations in the P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter are rapidly increasing in prevalence in Cambodia and confer resistance to PPQ.
Collapse
|
39
|
Staines HM, Moore CM, Slavic K, Krishna S. Transmembrane solute transport in the apicomplexan parasite Plasmodium. Emerg Top Life Sci 2017; 1:553-61. [PMID: 33525850 DOI: 10.1042/ETLS20170097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2017] [Revised: 11/12/2017] [Accepted: 11/16/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Apicomplexa are a large group of eukaryotic, single-celled parasites, with complex life cycles that occur within a wide range of different microenvironments. They include important human pathogens such as Plasmodium, the causal agent of malaria, and Toxoplasma, which causes toxoplasmosis most often in immunocompromised individuals. Despite environmental differences in their life cycles, these parasites retain the ability to obtain nutrients, remove waste products, and control ion balances. They achieve this flexibility by relying on proteins that can deliver and remove solutes. This reliance on transport proteins for essential functions makes these pathways excellent potential targets for drug development programmes. Transport proteins are frequently key mediators of drug resistance by their ability to remove drugs from their sites of action. The study of transport processes mediated by integral membrane proteins and, in particular, identification of their physiological functions and localisation, and differentiation from host orthologues has already established new validated drug targets. Our understanding of how apicomplexan parasites have adapted to changing environmental challenges has also increased through the study of their transporters. This brief introduction to membrane transporters of apicomplexans highlights recent discoveries focusing on Plasmodium and emphasises future directions.
Collapse
|
40
|
Blasco B, Leroy D, Fidock DA. Antimalarial drug resistance: linking Plasmodium falciparum parasite biology to the clinic. Nat Med 2017; 23:917-928. [PMID: 28777791 DOI: 10.1038/nm.4381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 318] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2017] [Accepted: 06/30/2017] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
The global adoption of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) in the early 2000s heralded a new era in effectively treating drug-resistant Plasmodium falciparum malaria. However, several Southeast Asian countries have now reported the emergence of parasites that have decreased susceptibility to artemisinin (ART) derivatives and ACT partner drugs, resulting in increasing rates of treatment failures. Here we review recent advances in understanding how antimalarials act and how resistance develops, and discuss new strategies for effectively combatting resistance, optimizing treatment and advancing the global campaign to eliminate malaria.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Didier Leroy
- Medicines for Malaria Venture, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - David A Fidock
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York, USA.,Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York, USA
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Siddiqui G, Srivastava A, Russell AS, Creek DJ. Multi-omics Based Identification of Specific Biochemical Changes Associated With PfKelch13-Mutant Artemisinin-Resistant Plasmodium falciparum. J Infect Dis 2017; 215:1435-1444. [PMID: 28368494 DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jix156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2017] [Accepted: 03/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The emergence of artemisinin resistance in the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum poses a major threat to the control and elimination of malaria. Certain point mutations in the propeller domain of PfKelch13 are associated with resistance, but PfKelch13 mutations do not always result in clinical resistance. The underlying mechanisms associated with artemisinin resistance are poorly understood, and the impact of PfKelch13 mutations on cellular biochemistry is not defined. Methods This study aimed to identify global biochemical differences between PfKelch13-mutant artemisinin-resistant and -sensitive strains of P. falciparum by combining liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS)-based proteomics, peptidomics, and metabolomics. Results Proteomics analysis found both PfKelch13 mutations examined to be specifically associated with decreased abundance of PfKelch13 protein. Metabolomics analysis demonstrated accumulation of glutathione and its precursor, gamma-glutamylcysteine, and significant depletion of 1 other putative metabolite in resistant strains. Peptidomics analysis revealed lower abundance of several endogenous peptides derived from hemoglobin (HBα and HBβ) in the artemisinin-resistant strains. Conclusion PfKelch13 mutations associated with artemisinin resistance lead to decreased abundance of PfKelch13 protein, decreased hemoglobin digestion, and enhanced glutathione production.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ghizal Siddiqui
- Drug Delivery, Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University,Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Anubhav Srivastava
- Drug Delivery, Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University,Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Adrian S Russell
- Drug Delivery, Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University,Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Darren J Creek
- Drug Delivery, Disposition and Dynamics, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University,Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Swain-Lenz D, Nikolskiy I, Cheng J, Sudarsanam P, Nayler D, Staller MV, Cohen BA. Causal Genetic Variation Underlying Metabolome Differences. Genetics 2017; 206:2199-2206. [PMID: 28652377 PMCID: PMC5560816 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.117.203752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2017] [Accepted: 06/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
An ongoing challenge in biology is to predict the phenotypes of individuals from their genotypes. Genetic variants that cause disease often change an individual's total metabolite profile, or metabolome. In light of our extensive knowledge of metabolic pathways, genetic variants that alter the metabolome may help predict novel phenotypes. To link genetic variants to changes in the metabolome, we studied natural variation in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae We used an untargeted mass spectrometry method to identify dozens of metabolite Quantitative Trait Loci (mQTL), genomic regions containing genetic variation that control differences in metabolite levels between individuals. We mapped differences in urea cycle metabolites to genetic variation in specific genes known to regulate amino acid biosynthesis. Our functional assays reveal that genetic variation in two genes, AUA1 and ARG81, cause the differences in the abundance of several urea cycle metabolites. Based on knowledge of the urea cycle, we predicted and then validated a new phenotype: sensitivity to a particular class of amino acid isomers. Our results are a proof-of-concept that untargeted mass spectrometry can reveal links between natural genetic variants and metabolome diversity. The interpretability of our results demonstrates the promise of using genetic variants underlying natural differences in the metabolome to predict novel phenotypes from genotype.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Devjanee Swain-Lenz
- Center for Genome Sciences and Systems Biology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
- Department of Genetics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
| | - Igor Nikolskiy
- Department of Chemistry, Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri 63130
| | - Jiye Cheng
- Center for Genome Sciences and Systems Biology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
- Center for Gut Microbiome and Nutrition Research, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63110
| | - Priya Sudarsanam
- Center for Genome Sciences and Systems Biology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
- Department of Genetics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
| | - Darcy Nayler
- Department of Genetics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
| | - Max V Staller
- Center for Genome Sciences and Systems Biology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
- Department of Genetics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
| | - Barak A Cohen
- Center for Genome Sciences and Systems Biology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
- Department of Genetics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Missouri 63110
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
Dhingra SK, Redhi D, Combrinck JM, Yeo T, Okombo J, Henrich PP, Cowell AN, Gupta P, Stegman ML, Hoke JM, Cooper RA, Winzeler E, Mok S, Egan TJ, Fidock DA. A Variant PfCRT Isoform Can Contribute to Plasmodium falciparum Resistance to the First-Line Partner Drug Piperaquine. mBio 2017; 8:e00303-17. [PMID: 28487425 DOI: 10.1128/mBio.00303-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Current efforts to reduce the global burden of malaria are threatened by the rapid spread throughout Asia of Plasmodium falciparum resistance to artemisinin-based combination therapies, which includes increasing rates of clinical failure with dihydroartemisinin plus piperaquine (PPQ) in Cambodia. Using zinc finger nuclease-based gene editing, we report that addition of the C101F mutation to the chloroquine (CQ) resistance-conferring PfCRT Dd2 isoform common to Asia can confer PPQ resistance to cultured parasites. Resistance was demonstrated as significantly higher PPQ concentrations causing 90% inhibition of parasite growth (IC90) or 50% parasite killing (50% lethal dose [LD50]). This mutation also reversed Dd2-mediated CQ resistance, sensitized parasites to amodiaquine, quinine, and artemisinin, and conferred amantadine and blasticidin resistance. Using heme fractionation assays, we demonstrate that PPQ causes a buildup of reactive free heme and inhibits the formation of chemically inert hemozoin crystals. Our data evoke inhibition of heme detoxification in the parasite’s acidic digestive vacuole as the primary mode of both the bis-aminoquinoline PPQ and the related 4-aminoquinoline CQ. Both drugs also inhibit hemoglobin proteolysis at elevated concentrations, suggesting an additional mode of action. Isogenic lines differing in their pfmdr1 copy number showed equivalent PPQ susceptibilities. We propose that mutations in PfCRT could contribute to a multifactorial basis of PPQ resistance in field isolates. The global agenda to eliminate malaria depends on the continued success of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs), which target the asexual blood stages of the intracellular parasite Plasmodium. Partial resistance to artemisinin, however, is now established in Southeast Asia, exposing the partner drugs to increased selective pressure. Plasmodium falciparum resistance to the first-line partner piperaquine (PPQ) is now spreading rapidly in Cambodia, resulting in clinical treatment failures. Here, we report that a variant form of the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter, harboring a C101F mutation edited into the chloroquine (CQ)-resistant Dd2 isoform prevalent in Asia, can confer PPQ resistance in cultured parasites. This was accompanied by a loss of CQ resistance. Biochemical assays showed that PPQ, like CQ, inhibits the detoxification of reactive heme that is formed by parasite-mediated catabolism of host hemoglobin. We propose that novel PfCRT variants emerging in the field could contribute to a multigenic basis of PPQ resistance.
Collapse
|
44
|
Jovel IT, Björkman A, Roper C, Mårtensson A, Ursing J. Unexpected selections of Plasmodium falciparum polymorphisms in previously treatment-naïve areas after monthly presumptive administration of three different anti-malarial drugs in Liberia 1976-78. Malar J 2017; 16:113. [PMID: 28288632 PMCID: PMC5347173 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-017-1747-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2016] [Accepted: 02/21/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background To assess the effect on malaria prevalence, village specific monthly administrations of pyrimethamine, chlorproguanil, chloroquine or placebo were given to children in four previously treatment-naïve Liberian villages, 1976–78. Plasmodium falciparum in vivo resistance developed to pyrimethamine only. Selection of molecular markers of P. falciparum resistance after 2 years of treatment are reported. Methods Blood samples were collected from 191 study children in a survey in 1978. Polymorphisms in pfcrt, pfmdr1, pfdhfr, pfdhps, pfmrp1 and pfnhe1 genes were determined using PCR-based methods. Results Pfcrt 72–76 CVIET was found in one chloroquine village sample, all remaining samples had pfcrt CVMNK. Pfmdr1 N86 prevalence was 100%. A pfmdr1 T1069ACT→ACG synonymous polymorphism was found in 30% of chloroquine village samples and 3% of other samples (P = 0.008). Variations in pfnhe1 block I were found in all except the chloroquine treated village (P < 0.001). Resistance associated pfdhfr 108N prevalence was 2% in the pyrimethamine village compared to 45–65% elsewhere, including the placebo village (P = 0.001). Conclusions Chloroquine treatment possibly resulted in the development of pfcrt 72–76 CVIET. Selection of pfmdr1 T1069ACG and a pfnhe1 block 1 genotypes indicates that chloroquine treatment exerted a selective pressure on P. falciparum. Pyrimethamine resistance associated pfdhfr 108N was present prior to the introduction of any drug. Decreased pfdhfr 108N frequency concurrent with development of pyrimethamine resistance suggests a non-pfdhfr polymorphisms mediated resistance mechanism. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12936-017-1747-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Irina T Jovel
- Malaria Research, Department of Microbiology, Tumour and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Anders Björkman
- Malaria Research, Department of Microbiology, Tumour and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Cally Roper
- Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Andreas Mårtensson
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, International Maternal and Child Health Unit, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Johan Ursing
- Malaria Research, Department of Microbiology, Tumour and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.,Department of Infectious Diseases, Danderyds Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
| |
Collapse
|
45
|
Zampieri M, Sekar K, Zamboni N, Sauer U. Frontiers of high-throughput metabolomics. Curr Opin Chem Biol 2017; 36:15-23. [PMID: 28064089 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2016.12.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2016] [Revised: 11/30/2016] [Accepted: 12/05/2016] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Large scale metabolomics studies are increasingly used to investigate genetically different individuals and time-dependent responses to environmental stimuli. New mass spectrometric approaches with at least an order of magnitude more rapid analysis of small molecules within the cell's metabolome are now paving the way towards true high-throughput metabolomics, opening new opportunities in systems biology, functional genomics, drug discovery, and personalized medicine. Here we discuss the impact and advantages of the progress made in profiling large cohorts and dynamic systems with high temporal resolution and automated sampling. In both areas, high-throughput metabolomics is gaining traction because it can generate hypotheses on molecular mechanisms and metabolic regulation. We conclude with the current status of the less mature single cell analyses where high-throughput analytics will be indispensable to resolve metabolic heterogeneity in populations and compartmentalization of metabolites.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mattia Zampieri
- Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, ETH Zurich, Auguste-Piccard-Hof 1, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Karthik Sekar
- Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, ETH Zurich, Auguste-Piccard-Hof 1, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Nicola Zamboni
- Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, ETH Zurich, Auguste-Piccard-Hof 1, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Uwe Sauer
- Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, ETH Zurich, Auguste-Piccard-Hof 1, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland.
| |
Collapse
|
46
|
Bingeman TS, Perlman DH, Storey DG, Lewis IA. Digestomics: an emerging strategy for comprehensive analysis of protein catabolism. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2016; 43:134-140. [PMID: 28025112 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2016.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2016] [Revised: 11/01/2016] [Accepted: 11/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
When cells mobilize nutrients from protein, they generate a fingerprint of peptide fragments that reflects the net action of proteases and the identities of the affected proteins. Analyzing these mixtures falls into a grey area between proteomics and metabolomics that is poorly served by existing technology. Herein, we describe an emerging digestomics strategy that bridges this gap and allows mixtures of proteolytic fragments to be quantitatively mapped with an amino acid level of resolution. We describe recent successes using this technique, including a case where digestomics provided the link between hemoglobin digestion by the malaria parasite and the world-wide distribution of chloroquine resistance. We highlight other areas of microbiology and cancer research that are well-suited to this emerging technology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Travis S Bingeman
- Department of Biological Science, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB, Canada T2N 1N4
| | - David H Perlman
- Department of Biological Science, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB, Canada T2N 1N4
| | - Douglas G Storey
- Department of Biological Science, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB, Canada T2N 1N4
| | - Ian A Lewis
- Department of Biological Science, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB, Canada T2N 1N4.
| |
Collapse
|
47
|
Gabryszewski SJ, Dhingra SK, Combrinck JM, Lewis IA, Callaghan PS, Hassett MR, Siriwardana A, Henrich PP, Lee AH, Gnädig NF, Musset L, Llinás M, Egan TJ, Roepe PD, Fidock DA. Evolution of Fitness Cost-Neutral Mutant PfCRT Conferring P. falciparum 4-Aminoquinoline Drug Resistance Is Accompanied by Altered Parasite Metabolism and Digestive Vacuole Physiology. PLoS Pathog 2016; 12:e1005976. [PMID: 27832198 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1005976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2016] [Accepted: 10/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Southeast Asia is an epicenter of multidrug-resistant Plasmodium falciparum strains. Selective pressures on the subcontinent have recurrently produced several allelic variants of parasite drug resistance genes, including the P. falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (pfcrt). Despite significant reductions in the deployment of the 4-aminoquinoline drug chloroquine (CQ), which selected for the mutant pfcrt alleles that halted CQ efficacy decades ago, the parasite pfcrt locus is continuously evolving. This is highlighted by the presence of a highly mutated allele, Cam734 pfcrt, which has acquired the singular ability to confer parasite CQ resistance without an associated fitness cost. Here, we used pfcrt-specific zinc-finger nucleases to genetically dissect this allele in the pathogenic setting of asexual blood-stage infection. Comparative analysis of drug resistance and growth profiles of recombinant parasites that express Cam734 or variants thereof, Dd2 (the most common Southeast Asian variant), or wild-type pfcrt, revealed previously unknown roles for PfCRT mutations in modulating parasite susceptibility to multiple antimalarial agents. These results were generated in the GC03 strain, used in multiple earlier pfcrt studies, and might differ in natural isolates harboring this allele. Results presented herein show that Cam734-mediated CQ resistance is dependent on the rare A144F mutation that has not been observed beyond Southeast Asia, and reveal distinct impacts of this and other Cam734-specific mutations on CQ resistance and parasite growth rates. Biochemical assays revealed a broad impact of mutant PfCRT isoforms on parasite metabolism, including nucleoside triphosphate levels, hemoglobin catabolism and disposition of heme, as well as digestive vacuole volume and pH. Results from our study provide new insights into the complex molecular basis and physiological impact of PfCRT-mediated antimalarial drug resistance, and inform ongoing efforts to characterize novel pfcrt alleles that can undermine the efficacy of first-line antimalarial drug regimens. Point mutations in the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter (PfCRT) earlier thwarted the clinical efficacy of chloroquine, the former gold standard, and constitute a major determinant of parasite susceptibility to antimalarial drugs. Recently, we reported that the highly mutated Cambodian PfCRT isoform Cam734 is fitness-neutral in terms of parasite growth, unlike other less fit isoforms such as Dd2 that are outcompeted by wild-type parasites in the absence of CQ pressure. Using pfcrt-specific zinc-finger nucleases to genetically dissect the Cam734 allele, we report that its unique constituent mutations directly contribute to CQ resistance and collectively offset fitness costs associated with intermediate mutational steps. We also report that these mutations can contribute to resistance or increased sensitivity to multiple first-line partner drugs. Using isogenic parasite lines, we provide evidence of changes in parasite metabolism associated with the Cam734 allele compared to Dd2. We also observe a close correlation between CQ inhibition of hemozoin formation and parasite growth, and provide evidence that Cam734 PfCRT can modulate drug potency depending on its membrane electrochemical gradient. Our data highlight the capacity of PfCRT to evolve new states of antimalarial drug resistance and to offset associated fitness costs through its impact on parasite physiology and hemoglobin catabolism.
Collapse
|
48
|
Creek DJ, Chua HH, Cobbold SA, Nijagal B, MacRae JI, Dickerman BK, Gilson PR, Ralph SA, McConville MJ. Metabolomics-Based Screening of the Malaria Box Reveals both Novel and Established Mechanisms of Action. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2016; 60:6650-63. [PMID: 27572396 DOI: 10.1128/AAC.01226-16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2016] [Accepted: 08/16/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
High-throughput phenotypic screening of chemical libraries has resulted in the identification of thousands of compounds with potent antimalarial activity, although in most cases, the mechanism(s) of action of these compounds remains unknown. Here we have investigated the mode of action of 90 antimalarial compounds derived from the Malaria Box collection using high-coverage, untargeted metabolomics analysis. Approximately half of the tested compounds induced significant metabolic perturbations in in vitro cultures of Plasmodium falciparum In most cases, the metabolic profiles were highly correlated with known antimalarials, in particular artemisinin, the 4-aminoquinolines, or atovaquone. Select Malaria Box compounds also induced changes in intermediates in essential metabolic pathways, such as isoprenoid biosynthesis (i.e., 2-C-methyl-d-erythritol 2,4-cyclodiphosphate) and linolenic acid metabolism (i.e., traumatic acid). This study provides a comprehensive database of the metabolic perturbations induced by chemically diverse inhibitors and highlights the utility of metabolomics for triaging new lead compounds and defining specific modes of action, which will assist with the development and optimization of new antimalarial drugs.
Collapse
|
49
|
Allman EL, Painter HJ, Samra J, Carrasquilla M, Llinás M. Metabolomic Profiling of the Malaria Box Reveals Antimalarial Target Pathways. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2016; 60:6635-49. [PMID: 27572391 DOI: 10.1128/AAC.01224-16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 108] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2016] [Accepted: 08/16/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The threat of widespread drug resistance to frontline antimalarials has renewed the urgency for identifying inexpensive chemotherapeutic compounds that are effective against Plasmodium falciparum, the parasite species responsible for the greatest number of malaria-related deaths worldwide. To aid in the fight against malaria, a recent extensive screening campaign has generated thousands of lead compounds with low micromolar activity against blood stage parasites. A subset of these leads has been compiled by the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) into a collection of structurally diverse compounds known as the MMV Malaria Box. Currently, little is known regarding the activity of these Malaria Box compounds on parasite metabolism during intraerythrocytic development, and a majority of the targets for these drugs have yet to be defined. Here we interrogated the in vitro metabolic effects of 189 drugs (including 169 of the drug-like compounds from the Malaria Box) using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS). The resulting metabolic fingerprints provide information on the parasite biochemical pathways affected by pharmacologic intervention and offer a critical blueprint for selecting and advancing lead compounds as next-generation antimalarial drugs. Our results reveal several major classes of metabolic disruption, which allow us to predict the mode of action (MoA) for many of the Malaria Box compounds. We anticipate that future combination therapies will be greatly informed by these results, allowing for the selection of appropriate drug combinations that simultaneously target multiple metabolic pathways, with the aim of eliminating malaria and forestalling the expansion of drug-resistant parasites in the field.
Collapse
|
50
|
Kloehn J, Blume M, Cobbold S, Saunders E, Dagley M, Mcconville M. Using metabolomics to dissect host–parasite interactions. Curr Opin Microbiol 2016; 32:59-65. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2016.04.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2016] [Revised: 04/24/2016] [Accepted: 04/27/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
|