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Live and let die: manipulation of host hepatocytes by exoerythrocytic Plasmodium parasites

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Abstract

The generation of rodent Plasmodium strains expressing fluorescent proteins in all life cycle stages has had a big impact on malaria research. With this tool in hand, for the first time it was possible to follow in real time by in vivo microscopy the infection route of Plasmodium sporozoites transmitted to the mammalian host by Anopheles mosquitoes. Recently, this work has been extended to the analysis of both hepatocyte infection by Plasmodium sporozoites, as well as liver merozoite transport into blood vessels. The stunning results of these studies have considerably changed our understanding of hepatocyte invasion and parasite liberation. Here, we describe the most important findings of the last years and in addition, we elaborate on the molecular events during the intracellular development of Plasmodium exoerythrocytic forms that give rise to erythrocyte infecting merozoites.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Prof. M. Mota for providing the cartoon with the revised life cycle of Plasmodium. Gordon Langsley and Christina Deschermeier are thanked for critically reading the manuscript.

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  1. Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Bernhard-Nocht-Str. 74, 20359, Hamburg, Germany

    Angelika Sturm & Volker Heussler

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  1. Angelika Sturm
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  2. Volker Heussler
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Correspondence to Volker Heussler.

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Sturm, A., Heussler, V. Live and let die: manipulation of host hepatocytes by exoerythrocytic Plasmodium parasites. Med Microbiol Immunol 196, 127–133 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00430-007-0044-3

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