Mechanistic insights into coordinated var transcriptional switching in malaria parasites - PubMed
5 hours ago
- #Malaria
- #Transcriptional Switching
- #Antigenic Variation
- Plasmodium falciparum's virulence is linked to PfEMP1, a hypervariable surface protein encoded by the var gene family.
- Var transcriptional switching allows the parasite to evade immune detection by changing expressed PfEMP1 forms.
- Transient activation of the var2csa locus and non-coding RNAs from this locus regulate var switching.
- An upstream open reading frame in var2csa's 5'-UTR destabilizes its mRNA via nonsense-mediated decay, promoting alternative var gene activation.
- These mechanisms provide insights into coordinated var gene switching, aiding chronic infection.