Immune sera recognize on erythrocytes a Plasmodium falciparum antigen composed of repeated amino acid sequences

Abstract

Protective immune responses against the asexual stages of the human malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, are most probably directed against exposed antigenic determinants on the surface of the free merozoite1-3 or the infected red blood cell4, and therefore antigens in these locations are candidates for testing as components of a defined molecular vaccine. To facilitate the search for such antigens, we recently developed a method for the expression of P. falciparum proteins in Escherichia coli as fused polypeptides5. Many clones producing antigens were detected by screening with immune human sera6,7. We show here that antibodies against the fused polypeptide expressed by one such clone r..