CRISPR/Cas9 knockouts reveal genetic interaction between strain-transcendent erythrocyte determinants of Plasmodium falciparum invasion

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

Significance During malaria infections, Plasmodium falciparum parasites invade RBCs. Identification of host factors for parasite invasion guides the development of vaccines and host-targeted therapeutics. Here we describe the development of an in vitro culture system for the functional analysis of RBC determinants using the immortal erythroleukemia cell line JK-1. JK-1 cells can be induced to differentiate synchronously, support parasite invasion, and are amenable to genetic manipulation. Using this system, we validated two host factors, basigin and CD44, as strain-transcendent host factors for parasite invasion, and we demonstrated a functional interaction between these two proteins. The ability to perform gene editing to produce RBC mutants will augment our ability to study malaria infection.