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Cheng et al. Vessel Plus 22020;4:17 Vessel Plus
DOI: 10.20517/2574-1209.2020.08

Review Open Access

Extracellular vesicles, from pathogenesis to
biomarkers: the case for cerebral malaria

Iris S. Cheng , Benjamin C. Sealy , Natalia Tiberti , Valery Combes 1
2
1,#
1,#
1 Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney 2007, Australia.
2 Department of Infectious - Tropical Diseases and Microbiology, IRCCS Sacro - Cuore Don Calabria Hospital, Verona Area 37024,
Italy.
# Co-equal first authors.
Correspondence to: Associate Prof. Valery Combes, Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences, University of Technology Sydney,
Australia. E-mail: valery.combes@uts.edu.au

How to cite this article: Cheng IS, Sealy BC, Tiberti N, Combes V. Extracellular vesicles, from pathogenesis to biomarkers: the
case for cerebral malaria. Vessel Plus 2020;4:17. http://dx.doi.org/10.20517/2574-1209.2020.08

Received: 5 Feb 2020 First Decision: 5 Mar 2020 Revised: 1 Apr 2020 Accepted: 7 Apr 2020 Published: 16 Jun 2020
Science Editor: Narasimham L. Parinandi Copy Editor: Jing-Wen Zhang Production Editor: Jing Yu

Received: First Decision: Revised: Accepted: Published: x
Abstract
Science Editor: Copy Editor: Production Editor: Jing Yu Malaria infections due to the Plasmodium parasite remains a major global health problem. Plasmodium falciparum
is responsible for majority of the severe cases, resulting in more than 400,000 deaths per annum. Extracellular
vesicles (EVs) released by vascular cells, including parasitised erythrocytes, have been detected with increased
levels in patients with malaria. EVs are thought to be involved in the pathogenesis of severe malaria, particularly
cerebral malaria, and represent a unique molecular signature for different forms of the infection. In this review, we
will cover the known effects of EVs on the vasculature and discuss their potential use as a biomarker of disease
severity.

Keywords: Cerebral malaria, extracellular vesicles, biomarker, pathogenesis, microvesicles, exosomes

INTRODUCTION TO MALARIA
Malaria can be a life-threatening disease and remains a global health problem with an estimated incidence
of 228 million cases and 405,000 deaths in 2018 . While its incidence has decreased significantly in the last
[1]
15 years, progress has stalled and case numbers are starting to increase again in some countries with drug
resistance a major threat . Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) is one of six Plasmodium species, all of
[1]
which can cause disease in humans, and is associated with the development of severe disease.

© The Author(s) 2020. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
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sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, for any purpose, even commercially, as long
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