Comparative RNA-seq of P. yoelii WT vs pynot1-g null parasites in schizont and gametocyte stages
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
ORGANISM(S): Plasmodium yoelii
PROVIDER: GSE136674 | GEO | 2021/05/24
REPOSITORIES: GEO
Similar Datasets
Project description:To determine the role of ALBA4 in mRNA homeostasis in Plasmodium parasites, we performed comparative total RNA-seq between a WT-GFP line and an alba4-null line. We performed these experiments at three points in the life cycle - asexual (schizont), sexual (gametocyte), and oocyst sporozoite stages. We found that ALBA4 has a multi-faceted role in mRNA homeostasis, and is involved in mRNA fate determination. ALBA4 appears to act in a stage-specific manner, affecting different sets of transcripts in each stage. Our data suggests that ALBA4 plays opposing roles - possibly promoting degradation in schizonts, while promoting mRNA protection in gametocytes. In oocyst sporozoites, it appears that ALBA4 has a mixed role, and may be involved in both degradation and protection of mRNAs.
2017-08-25 | GSE81834 | GEO
Project description:Many critical events in the Plasmodium lifecycle depend on tight regulation of cGMP homeostasis by guanylyl cyclases (GC) and phosphodiesterases including egress of schizonts from the host erythrocyte and activation of gametocytes upon a mosquito blood-feed. Both processes are triggered by distinct cues but similarly depend on GCα for cGMP production. How these cues are integrated by the same pathway remains a mystery. Here we show that in gametocytes, temperature-dependent epistatic interactions between phosphodiesterases prevent activation prior to a blood-feed. We demonstrate that GCα interacts with two multipass membrane cofactors, UGO and SLF, in schizonts and gametocytes. While SLF is important to regulate GCα basal activity, UGO is essential for schizont egress and gametocyte activation but not for GCα basal activity. Instead, UGO is key to upregulate GCα in response to signals that lower the tension of parasite membranes, including the mosquito molecule xanthurenic acid or a rise in extracellular pH. Altogether our results suggest that intramembrane sensing of distinct signals by UGO represents a focal point to enhance GCα activity and trigger timely schizont egress and activation of gametogenesis.
2023-04-28 | PXD035569 | Pride
Project description:During the malaria infection, Plasmodium parasites invade the host’s red blood cells where they can differentiate into two different life forms. The majority will replicate asexually and infect new erythrocytes. A small percentage, however, will transform into gametocytes – a specialized sexual stage able to survive and develop when taken up by Anopheles mosquito. As the gametocytes ensure the parasite’s transmission to a new host, their generation is an attractive target for new antimalarial interventions. The molecular mechanisms controlling gametocytogenesis, however, remain largely unknown due to the technical challenges: the early gametocytes are morphologically indistinguishable from asexual parasites and present in very low numbers during the infection. Recently, AP2-G - a transcription factor from an apicomplexa-specific apiAP2 family – was described as indispensable for gametocyte commitment in both human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum and rodent malaria model Plasmodium berghei. Therefore, we have decided to test whether the overexpression of this factor alone could increase gametocyte production and enable the investigation of uncharacterised, earliest stages of gametocyte development. To this end, we have engineered PBGAMi - a Plasmodium berghei line, in which all parasites were ap2-g deficient by default but able to overexpress it when induced with rapamycin. While the control parasites (PBGAMi R-), as expected, differentiated into asexual forms (schizonts) only, almost all rapamycin-treated parasites (PBGAMi R+) transformed into gametocytes. We used the generated line to perform RNA-seq analysis of the R- and R+ populations at different time points of their development and identify the changes arising between them, mapping the sequence of events leading to the formation of gametocytes.
2018-06-30 | GSE110201 | GEO
Project description:During the malaria infection, Plasmodium parasites invade the host’s red blood cells where they can differentiate into two different life forms. The majority will replicate asexually and infect new erythrocytes. A small percentage, however, will transform into gametocytes – a specialized sexual stage able to survive and develop when taken up by Anopheles mosquito. As the gametocytes ensure the parasite’s transmission to a new host, their generation is an attractive target for new antimalarial interventions. The molecular mechanisms controlling gametocytogenesis, however, remain largely unknown due to the technical challenges: the early gametocytes are morphologically indistinguishable from asexual parasites and present in very low numbers during the infection. Recently, AP2-G - a transcription factor from an apicomplexa-specific apiAP2 family – was described as indispensable for gametocyte commitment in both human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum and rodent malaria model Plasmodium berghei. Therefore, we have decided to test whether the overexpression of this factor alone could increase gametocyte production and enable the investigation of uncharacterised, earliest stages of gametocyte development. To this end, we have engineered PBGAMi - a Plasmodium berghei line, in which all parasites were ap2-g deficient by default but able to overexpress it when induced with rapamycin. While the control parasites (PBGAMi R-), as expected, differentiated into asexual forms (schizonts) only, almost all rapamycin-treated parasites (PBGAMi R+) transformed into gametocytes. We used the generated line to perform RNA-seq analysis of the R- and R+ populations at different time points of their development and identify the changes arising between them, mapping the sequence of events leading to the formation of gametocytes. At the same time we have generated purified transcriptomes of male and female gametocytes for the reference
2021-03-13 | GSE168817 | GEO
Project description:Differentiation from asexual blood stages to sexual gametocytes is required for transmission of malaria parasites from the human host to mosquitos, where sexual fertilization occurs to complete the lifecycle. Although preventing gametocyte development would block parasite transmission, the molecular mechanisms underlying sexual commitment and gametocyte maturation are still relatively unknown. Previous studies identified an ApiAP2 protein, AP2-G2, which plays a critical role in gametocyte maturation in rodent malaria parasite Plasmodium berghei by acting as the repressor of asexual stage genes in gametocytes. In this work we characterize the P. falciparum orthologue (PF3D7_1408200) of PbAP2-G2 and report that it plays a critical role in maturation of gametocytes. Disruption of pfap2-g2 did not obstruct commitment to sexual development but the majority of parasites were unable to develop normally beyond stage III gametocytes. In asexual stages PfAP2-G2 binds to the promoters of wide variety of genes expressed in diverse range of parasite’s life cycle stages including gametocytes, mosquito lifecycle stages early ring stage genes and genes encoding for proteins involved in egress and invasion. Surprisingly, we also identify binding of PfAP2-G2 in the gene body of almost 3000 genes. We could also show that PfAP2-G2 interacts with chromatin remodeling proteins and another ApiAP2 protein (PF3D7_1139300) whose motif is also overrepresented in the ChIP-seq data. Overall this work suggests that PfAP2-G2 is a transcriptional regulator that regulates genes possibly by recruiting additional transcription factors and chromatin remodeling machinery and plays a critical role in the development of malaria parasites as they transition from the asexual stage to gametocytes.
2021-02-16 | GSE157753 | GEO
Project description:The Plasmodium sexual gametocyte stages are the only transmissible form of the malaria parasite and are thus responsible for the continued transmission of the disease. Gametocytes undergo extensive functional and morphological changes from commitment to maturity, directed by an equally extensive control program. Several interconnected mechanisms governing sexual commitment have been described. However, the processes that drive the subsequent differentiation and development of the gametocyte remain largely unexplored. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by high-throughput sequencing we map the genome-wide occupancy of H3K36me2 and H3K36me3 during early gametocyte development and describe an association between these histone modifications and the global changes in the transcriptional program driving gametocyte development post-commitment.
2021-04-20 | GSE163432 | GEO
Project description:Purpose: To carryout comparative transcriptomics between the ZNF4-K0 and the wild type in the ring and mature gametocyte stage of Plasmodium falciparum Methods: Total RNA was isolated from ring stage and percoll- enriched mature (stage V) gametocytes from the ZNF4-KO and NF54 wildtype using the Trizol reagent (Invitrogen) according to the manufacturer’s protocol. . RNA sequencing was performed at the Genomic Facility of the University Clinic at the RWTH University Aachen, Germany. Briefly, the quality of the isolated total RNA samples from ring stage and mature gametocytes of the ZNF4-KO and the wildtype were evaluated by Tapestation 4200 (Agilent). Libraries were generated with TruSeq Stranded mRNA Library Preparation kit (Illumina) from high quality total RNA samples according to the manufacturer´s protocol. The generated libraries, which pass the QC check on Tapestation 4200 (Agilent) were sequenced on a NextSeq 500 (Illumina) with High output Kit v2.5 (150 cycles) for paired-end sequencing according to standard procedure provided by Illumina. Results:Comparative transcriptomics between wildtype and ZNF4-KO in ring and mature gametocyte stages show only 66 genes de-regulated by greater than 2-fold in the ZNF4-KO ring stage while about 473 (274- upregulated and 199 down-regulated) were deregulated in mature gametocytes. Conclusions: Our combine data therefore reveal that ZNF4 plays an important role in male gametocyte exflagellation through the regulation of male gametocyte genes
2022-04-30 | GSE196298 | GEO
Project description:For malaria transmission, the parasite must undergo sexual differentiation into mature gametocytes. However, the molecular basis for this critical transition in the parasites life cycle is unknown. Six previously uncharacterized genes, Pfg14.744, Pfg14.745, Pfg14.748, Pfg14.763, Pfg14.752 and Pfg6.6 that are members of a 36 gene Plasmodium falciparum-specific subtelomeric superfamily were found to be expressed in parasites that are committed to sexual development as suggested by co-expression of Pfs16 and Pfg27. Northern blots demonstrated that Pfg14.744 and Pfg14.748 were first expressed before the parasites differentiated into morphologically distinct gametocytes, transcription continued to increase until stage II gametocytes were formed and then rapidly decreased. Immunofluorescence assays indicated that both proteins were only produced in the subpopulation of ring stage parasites that are committed to gametocytogenesis and both localized to the parasitophorous vacuole (PV)b of the early ring stage parasites. As the parasites continued to develop Pfg14.748 remained within the parasitophorous vacuole, while Pfg14.744 was detected in the erythrocyte. The 5' flanking region of either gene alone was sufficient to drive early gametocyte specific expression of green fluorescent protein (GFP). In parasites transfected with a plasmid containing the Pfg14.748 5' flanking region immediately upstream of GFP, fluorescence was observed in a small number of schizonts the cycle before stage I gametocytes were observed. This expression pattern is consistent with commitment to sexual differentiation prior to merozoite release and erythrocyte invasion. Further investigation into the role of these genes in the transition from asexual to sexual differentiation could provide new strategies to block malaria transmission. Microarray analysis was used to compare two clones derived from Plasmodium falciparum strain 3D7 parasites that differ in their ability to undergo gametocytogenesis. Clone G+ produces gametocytes and clone G- produces very few if any gametocytes. RNA was harvested from the cultures when the asexual parasitemia was 0.9-1.48% (day 4) (n=4) after setting up the gametocyte cultures and 5.2-5.58% (day 6) (n=4) prior to the appearance of morphologically distinct gametocytes and used to generate cDNA that was labeled with Cy3 or Cy5 and hybridized to the Plasmodium falciparum 70 mer oligonucleotide microarray developed by DeRisi and co-workers.
2014-10-16 | E-GEOD-62364 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Transmission of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum from the human to the mosquito is initiated by sexual precursor cells, the gametocytes. Gametocytes are formed in response to stress signals and following up-take by a blood-feeding Anopheles mosquito initiate sexual reproduction. Gametocytes need to fine tune their gene expression in order to develop inside the mosquito to continue life-cycle progression. Previously we showed that post-translational histone acetylation controls gene expression during gametocyte development and transmission. However, the role of histone methylation remains poorly understood. We here use the histone G9a methyltransferase inhibitor BIX-01294 to investigate the role of histone methylation in regulating gene expression in gametocytes. Growth assays demonstrated that BIX-01294 inhibits intraerythrocytic replication with an IC50 of 13.0 nM. Furthermore, BIX-01294 significantly impairs gametocyte maturation and reduces the formation of gametes and zygotes. Comparative transcriptomics between BIX-01294-treated and untreated immature, mature and activated gametocytes demonstrated greater than 1.5-fold deregulation of over 359 genes. The majority of these genes are transcriptionally down-regulated in the activated gametocytes and could be assigned to transcription, translation, and signaling indicating a contribution of histone methylations in mediating gametogenesis. Our combined data shows that inhibitors of histone methylation may serve as a multi-stage antimalarials.
2019-11-25 | GSE136008 | GEO
Project description:The P.falciparum gametocyte proteomes of wild type gametocytes and two clones of Pfg377 depleted gametocytes were obtained for a label free comparative analysis to identify osmiophilic body proteins. Gametocyte samples were analyzed by LC-MS/MS and processed by MaxQuant for identification and LFQ quantification.
2016-07-21 | PXD004124 | Pride