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Conference Agenda

Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).

Daily Overview

Session

CP4.1: Cells, Molecules and Genes – Tribute to Bob Sinden - 10 min talks
Location: Lecture Theatre 1
Session Chair: Alicja (Ala) Tabor, The University Of Queensland
Session Chair: Alexander Gofton, CSIRO

Presentation 2

Transmission studies of gene-edited Plasmodium falciparum indicate crucial role of parasite pyridoxal 5’-phosphate (PLP) biosynthesis in mosquito stage development

Lindsay Stewart^1,2, Mojca Kristan^1,2, Mariana Reis Wunderlich^1,2, Annie Tremp^1,2, Michaela Bikarova^1,2, Naoki Matoba^1,2, Rosie Bridgwater¹, Mufuliat Toyin Famodimu¹, Eduardo Alves¹, Colin Sutherland^1,2, Michael Delves¹

1: Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, LSHTM, United Kingdom; 2: Human Malaria Transmission Facility, LSHTM, London, UK

The LSHTM Human Malaria Transmission Facility provides access to human malaria parasite transmission both for research groups within the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and external collaborators worldwide. Our specialist team works with these collaborators to design and execute studies relating to the transmission of Plasmodium parasites using gametocytes grown in vitro in the laboratory or collected directly from clinical samples received by the UK HSA Malaria Reference Laboratory and fed to insectary-reared Anopheles mosquitoes. As a case study illustrating the support offered by the HMTF, we present new data indicating an important role for pyridoxal 5’-phosphate biosynthesis (vitamin B6; PLP) in mosquito stage development of P. falciparum. Enzymes in this pathway were found to be highly enriched in an analysis of the stage V gametocyte “translatome”, the subset of the total gametocyte proteome actively incorporating a pulse of labelled methionine in late-stage gametocytes. Disruption of PDX2, one of two subunits of pyridoxal 5’-phosphate synthase, reduced gametocyte infectivity to Anopheles coluzzi mosquitoes. This reduction was manifest in three measures: oocyst numbers per mosquito midgut, oocyst diameter and, most profoundly, number of salivary gland sporozoites per mosquito. All three negative outcomes were rescued by vitamin B6 supplementation.