Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40983687›Full record

ArticleThe EMBO journal2025

The Plasmodium CSP repeats have elastic properties with a critical role in sporozoite motility.

Amanda E Balaban, Sachie Kanatani, Jaba Mitra, Jason Gregory, Natasha Vartak, Ariadne Sinnis-Bourozikas, Fredrich Frischknecht, Taekjip Ha, Photini Sinnis

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in The EMBO journal, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Amanda E BalabanJohns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute and Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
Sachie KanataniJohns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute and Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7072-0447
Jaba MitraDepartment of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA.
Jason GregoryJohns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute and Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5030-7292
Natasha VartakJohns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute and Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
Ariadne Sinnis-BourozikasJohns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute and Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
Fredrich FrischknechtIntegrative Parasitology, Center for Infectious Diseases, Heidelberg University Medical School, Heidelberg, Germany.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8332-6668
Taekjip HaDepartment of Biophysics and Biophysical Chemistry, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2195-6258
Photini SinnisJohns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute and Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA. psinnis1@jhu.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2954-7547

Funding

Structure and Function of the Circumsporozoite ProteinR01AI056840 · NIAID · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · PI SINNIS, PHOTINI · 2005 to 2014
$3.8M
Single Molecule Studies of Nucleic Acids RemodelingR35GM122569 · NIGMS · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · PI Taekjip Ha · 2017 to 2026
$3.5M
Zeiss LSM780 Confocal Microscope for a Core FacilityS10OD016374 · OD · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · PI KUO, SCOT CHARLES · 2013 to 2013
$584k
HHS | National Institutes of Health (NIH) R01AI056840HHS | National Institutes of Health (NIH) R35 122569JHSPH | Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health fellowshipsNIAID NIH HHS R01 AI056840NIGMS NIH HHS R35 GM122569NIH HHS S10 OD016374
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The Plasmodium circumsporozoite protein (CSP) is the major surface protein of the sporozoite, the infective stage of the malaria parasite. The central repeat region of CSP is the primary immunological target of the sporozoite stage, yet little is known about its structure or function. Here, we show that sporozoite mutants with truncated or scrambled CSP repeats exhibit impaired motility due to altered adhesion site formation and dynamics. Since CSP forms the environment in which the thrombospondin-related anonymous protein (TRAP)-containing adhesion sites assemble, our data suggest that the dense CSP coat is altered in the repeat mutants, affecting adhesion site formation. We hypothesized that this role depends on the biophysical properties of the repeats, and used single-molecule fluorescence-force spectroscopy to test this hypothesis. Our results indicate that the CSP repeats behave like a stiff, linear spring with elastic properties that depend on its length and are lost when the repeats are scrambled. These data provide evidence for a functional role of the CSP repeat region during Plasmodium infection and motility.

Indexed as

PlasmodiumPlasmodium bergheiPlasmodium falciparumProtozoan ProteinsSporozoitesAnimalsElasticitycircumsporozoite protein, ProtozoanProtozoan ProteinsCircumsporozoite ProteinMalariaMotilityRepeatsSporozoite

Identifiers

PMID40983687
PMCPMC12583564

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.