Selected Publications
2014
Montagna, G.M., Beigier-Bompadre, M., Becker, M., Kroczek, R.A., Kaufmann, S.H.E., and Matuschewski, K. (2014) Antigen export during liver infection of the malaria parasite augments protective immunity. mBio 5: e01321-14.
Evidence that Plasmodium parasites strictly control protein export during liver infection to minimize immune recognition.
http://mbio.asm.org/content/5/4/e01321-14
Haussig, J.M., Burgold, J., Hafalla, J.C.R., Matuschewski, K., and Kooij, T.W.A. (2014) Signatures of malaria vaccine efficacy in ageing murine immune memory. Parasite Immunol. 36: 199-206.
Describes robust CD8+ T cell-mediated vaccine-induced immunity in a murine immunosenescence model.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pim.12104/abstract
Offeddu, V., Rauch, M., Silvie, O., and Matuschewski, K. (2014). The Plasmodium protein P113 supports efficient sporozoite to liver stage conversion in vivo. Mol. Biochem. Parasitol. 193: 101-109.
Experimental genetics analysis of a GPI-anchored Plasmodium antigen that is shared between different life cycle stages.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166685114000231
Silvie, O., Briquet, S., Müller, K., Manzoni, G., and Matuschewski, K. (2014). Post-transcriptional silencing of UIS4 in Plasmodium berghei sporozoites is important for host switch. Mol. Microbiol. 91: 1200-1213.
Molecular and functional evidence for importance of post-transcriptional control of gene expression in Plasmodium sporozoites.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mmi.12528/abstract
Grützke, J., Rindte, K., Goosmann, C., Silvie., O., Rauch, C., Heuer, D., Lehmann, M.J., Mueller, A.-K., Brinkmann, V., Matuschewski, K., and Ingmundson, A (2014). The spatiotemporal dynamics and membranous features of the Plasmodium liver stage tubovesicular network. Traffic 15: 362-382.
Ontogeny of the Plasmodium liver stage tubovesicular network revealed dynamic and tight association of the parasite interface with the host cell late endosomal/lysosomal compartment.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/tra.12151/abstract
Ingmundson, A., Alano, P., Matuschewski, K., and Silvestrini, F. (2014) Feeling at home from arrival to departure: Protein export and host cell remodeling during Plasmodium liver stage and gametocyte maturation. Cell. Microbiol. 18: 324-333. (Review)
Overview on protein export and host cell remodeling beyond asexual replication, in Plasmodium gametocytes and liver stages.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cmi.12251/abstract
Haussig, J.M., Matuschewski, K., and Kooij, T.W.A. (2014) Identification of vital and dispensable sulphur utilization factors in the Plasmodium apicoplast. PLoS One 9: e89718.
Systematic experimental genetics of the apicoplast iron-sulphur cluster biosynthesis pathway of the Plasmodium parasite.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0089718
Sato, Y., Montagna, G., and Matuschewski, K. (2014) Plasmodium sporozoites acquire virulence and immunogenicity during mosquito hemocoel transit. Infect. Immun. 82: 1164-1172.
This study shows that salivary gland invasion is not an essential requirement for acquisition of sporozoite virulence and immunogenicity providing a rationale for mosquito-free sporozoite cultures for whole organism vaccine.
http://iai.asm.org/content/82/3/1164.long
Kenthirapalan, S., Waters, A.P., Matuschewski, K., and Kooij, T.W.A. (2014). Copper-transporting ATPase is important for malaria parasite fertility. Mol. Microbiol. 91: 315-325.
First evidence for a critical role of copper homeostasis in Plasmodium fertility of both male and female gametes.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mmi.12461/abstract
2013
Boysen K., and Matuschewski, K. (2013) Inhibitor of cysteine proteases is critical for motility and infectivity of Plasmodium sporozoites. mBio 4: e00874-13.
First genetic evidence for a role of an inhibitor of cysteine proteases in productive motility of a eukaryotic cell.
http://mbio.asm.org/content/4/6/e00874-13.long
[See also F1000 recommendation: http://f1000.com/prime/718188422]
Schaer, J., Perkins, S.L., Decher, J., Leendertz, F., Fahr, J., Weber, N., and Matuschewski, K. (2013) High diversity of West African bat malaria parasites and a tight link with rodent Plasmodium taxa. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 110: 17415-17419.
First molecular phylogeny of haemosporidian parasites in Chiroptera from the Upper Guinean forest ecosystem uncovered a tight link of bat Plasmodium parasites with rodent Plasmodium taxa.
http://www.pnas.org/content/110/43/17415.long
[See also F1000 recommendation: http://f1000.com/prime/718135627]
Matz, J.M., Matuschewski, K., and Kooij, T.W.A. (2013). Two putative protein export regulators promote Plasmodium blood stage development in vivo. Mol. Biochem. Parasitol. 191: 44-52.
Experimental genetics in a murine malaria in vivo model revealed distinct roles for the components of the proposed Plasmodium translocon of exported proteins.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166685113001345
Sparr. C., Purkayastha N., Kolesinska B., Gengenbacher, M., Amulic, B., Matuschewski, K., Seebach, D., and Kamena, F. (2013). Improved efficacy of fosmidomycin against Plasmodium and Mycobacterium species by combination with the cell penetrating peptide octaarginine. Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 57: 4689-4698.
Chemical genetics evidence for vital roles of the non-mevalonate pathway of isoprenoid biosynthesis in malaria and TB revealed by a combination of an antibiotic and a cell-penetrating peptide.
http://aac.asm.org/content/57/10/4689.long
Hafalla, J.C.R., Bauza, K., Friesen, J., Gonzalez-Aseguinolaza, G., Hill, A.V.S., and Matuschewski, K. (2013). Identification of targets of CD8+ T cell responses to malaria liver stages by genome-wide epitope profiling. PLoS Pathogens 9: e1003303.
Genome-scale T-cell epitope screen revealed distinct signatures of protection and sporozoite exposure.
http://www.plospathogens.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.ppat.1003303