Extracellular Vesicles Derived from Plasmodium-infected Hosts as Stimuli of "Trained" Innate Immunity

Abstract

Although the burden of malaria has been successfully controlled globally, this disease remains a major public health issue. To date, neither existing drugs nor vaccines against malaria are sufficient in eliminating malaria worldwide. To achieve the eradication of malaria by 2040, effective interventions targeting all Plasmodium species are urgently needed. As the cornerstone of vaccine design, immune memory serves a significant role in the host's defense against Plasmodium infections. It has long been considered that innate immunity is non-specific and lacks immunologic memory. However, emerging evidence has suggested that innate immunity can be trained following exposure of the body to infectious agents, such as Plasmodium or its products, which, in turn, promotes the onset of a type of memory in innate immune cells. The above "trained" innate immune cells, whose phenotype is modified in response to epigenetic modifications, metabolic recombination, or cytokine secretion, exhibit differential pathophysiology after the exposure of the body to a pathogen. In addition, Plasmodium-infected red blood cells and other host cells can secrete exosomes that contain conserved parasite-specific information, such as proteins, RNA, non-coding RNA molecules, and nucleic acids. These molecules can act as stimuli for promoting the establishment of "trained" innate immunity against malaria, thereby altering the onset and progression of the parasitic disease. A deeper understanding of the role of exosomes in the development of "trained" innate immunity during Plasmodium infection could provide novel therapeutic and prevention strategies against malaria infections.

Keywords: Plasmodium; RNA; extracellular vesicle; innate immune cells; malaria; stimuli.