TABLE 1.

Infectivity of Plasmodium berghei sporozoites for fetuin-A-deficient mice^a

Mice	No. infected/no. inoculated	Prepatent period (mean days ± SD)	95% Confidence interval
Wild type	8/8	3.6 ± 0.92	2.86-4.39
Fetuin-A knockout	8/8	5.2 ± 1.49	4.01-6.49

^aFetuin-A knockout mice show less susceptibility to infection by P. berghei sporozoites. Wild-type C57BL/6 and fetuin-A knockout mice were injected with 10,000 to 15,000 sporozoites intravenously in the tail vein. Mice were examined daily for the presence of malaria parasites in their peripheral blood. The prepatent period corresponds to the delay between inoculation and the appearance of blood-stage parasites in blood smears. Parasitemia was defined as the percentage of infected erythrocytes.