Hijacking the human complement inhibitor C4b-binding protein by the sporozoite stage of the Plasmodium falciparum parasite

We thank Anna Blom for donating the C4bpα CCP1-2 expression plasmid (pET26-CCP1-2). The following reagent was obtained through BEI Resources, NIAID, NIH: Plasmid pDS56-32/RBSII-CS27IVC-6XHis, MRA-272, contributed by Photini Sinnis. The complement system is considered the first line of defense against pathogens. Hijacking complement regulators from blood is a common evasion tactic of pathogens to inhibit complement activation on their surfaces. Here, we report hijacking of the complement C4b-binding protein (C4bp), the regulator of the classical and lectin pathways of complement activation, by the sporozoite (SPZ) stage of the Plasmodium falciparum parasite. This was shown by direct binding …