IDENTIFICATION OF A FAMILY OF RAB G-PROTEINS IN PLASMODIUM-FALCIPARUMAND A DETAILED CHARACTERIZATION OF PFRAB6

As a first step towards developing a set of compartment-specific probe s for studying protein trafficking in the malaria-infected erythrocyte , we describe here a family of Plasmodium falciparum Rab proteins. We characterise in detail P. falciparum Rab6 (PfRab6) a marker which in o ther cells is specific for the Golgi/trans Golgi network. Although PfR ab6 mRNA is expressed throughout the intraerythrocytic cycle, maximal expression occurs at the trophozoite stage. Immunofluorescence microsc opy shows that the distribution of PfRab6 changes during the final sta ges of parasite maturation, coalescing into multiple foci, each of whi ch is associated with the nucleus of a forming daughter parasite.