High-resolution proteomics unveils salivary gland disruption and saliva-hemolymph protein exchange in Plasmodium-infected mosquitoes.

ABSTRACT: Plasmodium sporozoites, the infective stage of malaria, must invade the mosquito salivary glands (SGs) before being transmitted to a vertebrate host. However, the physiological and biochemical effects of this invasion remain largely unexplored. We examined the impact of Plasmodium infection on Anopheles gambiae salivary glands using high-resolution proteomics, gene expression, and morphological analysis. The data reveal differential expression of various proteins, including the enrichment of hemolymph-derived humoral proteins in infected salivary glands. These proteins diffuse into the SGs due to structural damage caused by the sporozoites during invasion, while saliva proteins diffuse out into the circulation. Moreover, proteomic analysis of saliva from P. berghei- or P. falciparum-infect

SUBMITTER: Alves E Silva TL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12635079 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature