Knocking out malaria in one punch

When the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum infects red blood cells (RBCs), it makes a protein called PfEMP1 that is displayed on the RBC surface. PfEMP1 sticks the RBCs to vessels walls; those immobilized cells can then block small blood vessels and produce malaria symptoms.

Now, Cooke et al., on page 899, show that knocking out a single gene in P. falciparum prevents transport of PfEMP1, the parasite's major virulence factor, to the outer surface of the plasma membrane of infected RBCs.

PfEMP1 and numerous other Plasmodium proteins travel to the plasma membrane via parasite-constructed membranous structures called Maurer's clefts. The clefts dock under the surface of the plasma membrane and deposit several parasite proteins.

Cooke et al. found that knocking out skeleton binding protein-1 (SBP1), a resident of clefts, blocked PfEMP1 from reaching...