Table 1. Comparison of growth and biochemical properties of P. falciparum grown in GR-deficient and control RBCs.
| GR-deficient RBCs | Control RBCs | |
| aTotal glutathione in the parasite | ||
| (3D7, exp. 1+2) [nmol/mg protein] | 68±2.1 | 73±1.4 |
| bGR activity in parasites [mU/mg] | 160±6 | 270±14* (P = 0.002) |
| Parasite multiplication rate per RBC | ||
| cycle (3D7, exp. 1)) | 4.9±0.3 | 5.4±0.5 |
| IC50 chloroquine (3D7) [nM] | 8.2±0.2 (4.9±0.2) | 8.0±0.2 (A+) (5.9±0.6) |
| IC50 chloroquine (K1) [nM] | 160±10 | 190±11 (A+) |
| IC50 methylene blue (3D7) [nM] | 3.9±0.2 (4.2±0.3) | 3.8±0.2 (A+) (4.2±0.3) |
| IC50 methylene blue (K1) [nM] | 8.8±0.5 | 8.1±0.4 (A+) |
| IC50 artemisinin (3D7, exp. 2) [nM] | 14±0.5 | 16±0.8 |
| IC50 paraquat (3D7, exp. 2) [μM] | 42±2 | 53±3* (P = 0.04) |
| IC50 SNP (3D7, exp. 2) [μM] | 5.8±0.3 | 11±0.8* (P = 0.006) |
Experiment 1 refers to the index patient and the A+ blood group control, experiment 2 (data given in brackets or indicated as exp. 2) refers to index patient and mean values of 3 controls. All values given represent mean values ± SEM of the different individuals included and two to three parallel determinations per sample.
a
Before determining the biochemical parameters in the parasites, P. falciparum was grown over 4–5 cycles (corresponding to 8–10 days) in the respective RBCs. Control cells had the same blood group (0+) as the patient's.
b
*Indicates significant differences (P<0.05) between GR-deficient cells and controls.