CD14(hi)CD16 monocytes phagocytose antibody-opsonised Plasmodium falciparum infected erythrocytes more efficiently than other monocyte subsets, and require CD16 and complement to do so

Abstract

Background With more than 600,000 deaths from malaria, mainly of children under five years old and caused by infection with Plasmodium falciparum, comes an urgent need for an effective anti-malaria vaccine. Limited details on the mechanisms of protective immunity are a barrier to vaccine development. Antibodies play an important role in immunity to malaria and monocytes are key effectors in antibody-mediated protection by phagocytosing antibody-opsonised infected erythrocytes (IE). Eliciting antibodies that enhance phagocytosis of IE is therefore an important potential component of an effective vaccine, requiring robust assays to determine the ability of elicited antibodies to stimulate this..