Endothelial glycocalyx regulates cytoadherence in Plasmodium falciparum malaria.

ABSTRACT: Malaria is associated with significant microcirculation disorders, especially when the infection reaches its severe stage. This can lead to a range of fatal conditions, from cerebral malaria to multiple organ failure, of not fully understood pathogenesis. It has recently been proposed that a breakdown of the glycocalyx, the carbohydrate-rich layer lining the vascular endothelium, plays a key role in severe malaria, but direct evidence supporting this hypothesis is still lacking. Here, the interactions between Plasmodium falciparum infected red blood cells ( PfRBCs) and endothelial glycocalyx are investigated by developing an in vitro, physiologically relevant model of human microcirculation based on microfluidics. Impairment of the glycocalyx is obtained by enzymatic removal of sialic acid

SUBMITTER: Introini V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6303788 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature