Febrile temperature but not proinflammatory cytokines promotes phosphatidylserine expression on Plasmodium falciparum malaria-infected red blood cells during parasite maturation.

Intraerythrocytic maturation of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum is associated with profound changes in the asymmetry of phospholipids in the lipid bilayer of the parasitized red blood cells (pRBCs). These changes may contribute to adherence of pRBCs to endothelial cells. This study investigates the effect of febrile temperature and proinflammatory cytokines on phosphatidylserine (PS) expression on the exofacial surface of pRBCs during parasite maturation. The expression of PS on the pRBCs was determined by flow cytometry using fluorescein-labeled annexin V, which specifically binds to PS and a vital nucleic acid fluorochrome for parasite staining. The results showed that PS expression on the surface of pRBCs increased in association with parasite maturation, especially at the late parasite stage. Furthermore, the growth of P. falciparum also accelerated senescence of the uninfected RBCs in parasite cultures. Exposure to febrile temperature led to significant increases in the expression of PS on the surface of pRBCs, particularly at the late parasite stage associated with the virulence strain of the parasite. In contrast, proinflammatory cytokines had no detectable effect on PS expression on pRBCs. These data suggest that PS molecule expression is more dependent on fever, parasitemia, parasite strain, and virulence than on cytokine exposure. These findings contribute to our understanding of the factors that are involved in malaria pathogenesis. Copyright 2010 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry.