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Host iron status and iron supplementation mediate susceptibility to erythrocytic stage Plasmodium falciparum.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Clark, MA; Goheen, MM; Fulford, A; Prentice, AM; Elnagheeb, MA; Patel, J; Fisher, N; Taylor, SM; Kasthuri, RS; Cerami, C
Published in: Nat Commun
July 25, 2014

Iron deficiency and malaria have similar global distributions, and frequently co-exist in pregnant women and young children. Where both conditions are prevalent, iron supplementation is complicated by observations that iron deficiency anaemia protects against falciparum malaria, and that iron supplements increase susceptibility to clinically significant malaria, but the mechanisms remain obscure. Here, using an in vitro parasite culture system with erythrocytes from iron-deficient and replete human donors, we demonstrate that Plasmodium falciparum infects iron-deficient erythrocytes less efficiently. In addition, owing to merozoite preference for young erythrocytes, iron supplementation of iron-deficient individuals reverses the protective effects of iron deficiency. Our results provide experimental validation of field observations reporting protective effects of iron deficiency and harmful effects of iron administration on human malaria susceptibility. Because recovery from anaemia requires transient reticulocytosis, our findings imply that in malarious regions iron supplementation should be accompanied by effective measures to prevent falciparum malaria.

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Published In

Nat Commun

DOI

EISSN

2041-1723

Publication Date

July 25, 2014

Volume

5

Start / End Page

4446

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Young Adult
  • Plasmodium falciparum
  • Middle Aged
  • Malaria, Falciparum
  • Iron
  • Humans
  • Erythrocytes
  • Disease Susceptibility
  • Dietary Supplements
  • Anemia, Iron-Deficiency
 

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Clark, M. A., Goheen, M. M., Fulford, A., Prentice, A. M., Elnagheeb, M. A., Patel, J., … Cerami, C. (2014). Host iron status and iron supplementation mediate susceptibility to erythrocytic stage Plasmodium falciparum. Nat Commun, 5, 4446. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms5446
Clark, Martha A., Morgan M. Goheen, Anthony Fulford, Andrew M. Prentice, Marwa A. Elnagheeb, Jaymin Patel, Nancy Fisher, Steve M. Taylor, Raj S. Kasthuri, and Carla Cerami. “Host iron status and iron supplementation mediate susceptibility to erythrocytic stage Plasmodium falciparum.Nat Commun 5 (July 25, 2014): 4446. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms5446.
Clark MA, Goheen MM, Fulford A, Prentice AM, Elnagheeb MA, Patel J, et al. Host iron status and iron supplementation mediate susceptibility to erythrocytic stage Plasmodium falciparum. Nat Commun. 2014 Jul 25;5:4446.
Clark, Martha A., et al. “Host iron status and iron supplementation mediate susceptibility to erythrocytic stage Plasmodium falciparum.Nat Commun, vol. 5, July 2014, p. 4446. Pubmed, doi:10.1038/ncomms5446.
Clark MA, Goheen MM, Fulford A, Prentice AM, Elnagheeb MA, Patel J, Fisher N, Taylor SM, Kasthuri RS, Cerami C. Host iron status and iron supplementation mediate susceptibility to erythrocytic stage Plasmodium falciparum. Nat Commun. 2014 Jul 25;5:4446.

Published In

Nat Commun

DOI

EISSN

2041-1723

Publication Date

July 25, 2014

Volume

5

Start / End Page

4446

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Young Adult
  • Plasmodium falciparum
  • Middle Aged
  • Malaria, Falciparum
  • Iron
  • Humans
  • Erythrocytes
  • Disease Susceptibility
  • Dietary Supplements
  • Anemia, Iron-Deficiency