The Plasmodium falciparum Artemisinin Susceptibility-Associated AP-2 Adaptin μ Subunit is Clathrin Independent and Essential for Schizont Maturation

Abstract

We examine in detail the AP-2 adaptin complex from the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum . In most studied organisms, AP-2 is involved in bringing material into the cell from outside, a process called endocytosis. Previous work shows that changes to the μ subunit of AP-2 can contribute to drug resistance. Our experiments show that AP-2 is essential for parasite development in blood but does not have any role in clathrin-mediated endocytosis. This suggests that a specialized function for AP-2 has developed in malaria parasites, and this may be important for understanding its impact on drug resistance.