Plasmodium falciparum reticulocyte binding-like homologue protein 2 (PfRH2) is a key adhesive molecule involved in erythrocyte invasion.

ABSTRACT: Erythrocyte invasion by Plasmodium merozoites is a complex, multistep process that is mediated by a number of parasite ligand-erythrocyte receptor interactions. One such family of parasite ligands includes the P. falciparum reticulocyte binding homologue (PfRH) proteins that are homologous with the P. vivax reticulocyte binding proteins and have been shown to play a role in erythrocyte invasion. There are five functional PfRH proteins of which only PfRH2a/2b have not yet been demonstrated to bind erythrocytes. In this study, we demonstrated that native PfRH2a/2b is processed near the N-terminus yielding fragments of 220 kDa and 80 kDa that exhibit differential erythrocyte binding specificities. The erythrocyte binding specificity of the 220 kDa processed fragment of native PfRH2a/2b was si

SUBMITTER: Sahar T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3046117 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature