近日，德国海德堡大学Schwarz, Ulrich S.团队揭示了疟原虫的手性决定了它们的运动模式。相关论文于2025年11月24日发表在《自然—物理学》杂志上。
疟疾寄生虫由雌性蚊子注入宿主皮肤后，会迅速沿螺旋轨迹运动，使其成为医学上高度相关的活性手性粒子模型系统。
该研究通过分析其在合成水凝胶中的三维运动，发现这些寄生虫始终沿右旋螺旋运动。此外，当到达二维基质时，它们会转变为顺时针圆周运动，这与在三维介质中二维基质上的运动方向相反。这表明疟疾寄生虫进化出手性特征以控制其在三维与二维环境间的转换。
利用三明治实验，研究组证实手性也决定其从二维向三维运动的转换。结合滑行运动理论、双侧牵引力分析及超分辨率显微技术，研究组发现二维和三维空间中观察到的宏观手性最可能源于顶极环处黏附分子的非对称释放。研究结果表明，启动感染的疟疾寄生虫细长形态进化出强烈手性，因其需在不同物理环境间切换。
附：英文原文
Title: Chirality of malaria parasites determines their motion patterns
Author: Lettermann, Leon, Singer, Mirko, Steinbrck, Smilla, Ziebert, Falko, Kanatani, Sachie, Sinnis, Photini, Frischknecht, Friedrich, Schwarz, Ulrich S.
Issue&Volume: 2025-11-24
Abstract: Malaria parasites are injected by female mosquitoes into the skin of the vertebrate host and start to quickly move on helical trajectories, making them a medically highly relevant model system of active chiral particles. Here we find that these parasites always move on right-handed helices by analysing their three-dimensional motion in synthetic hydrogels. Furthermore, they transition to clockwise circular motion when they reach a two-dimensional substrate, which is the opposite direction to when circling on a two-dimensional substrate in a medium. This suggests that malaria parasites have evolved chirality as a means to control their transitions between three-dimensional and two-dimensional environments. Using a sandwich assay, we show that chirality also determines their transition from two-dimensional to three-dimensional motion. Combining a theory for gliding motility with two-sided traction force and super-resolution microscopies, we find that the most probable basis for the observed macroscopic chirality in both two and three dimensions is the asymmetric release of adhesion molecules at the apical polar ring. Our results suggest that the slender forms of the malaria parasites that start an infection have evolved very strong chirality because they have to switch between different physical environments. Malaria parasites move on helical trajectories when infecting their hosts. Now it is shown that they use right-handed chirality to control their motion patterns, and that this chirality is linked to the way they release adhesion molecules.
DOI: 10.1038/s41567-025-03096-0
Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41567-025-03096-0