Long-Term In vitro Cultivation of Plasmodium falciparum in a Novel Cell Culture Device

Antoine Géry (1, 2) , Leonardo Basco (3) , Natacha Heutte (4) , Marilyne Guillamin (5, 6) , Ho-Mai-Thy N’guyen (1, 2) , Estelle Richard (1, 2) , David Garon (1, 2) , Philippe Eldin de Pécoulas (1, 2)

1 ABTE - Aliments Bioprocédés Toxicologie Environnements
2 UNICANCER/CRLC - Centre Régional de Lutte contre le Cancer François Baclesse [Caen]
3 VITROME - Vecteurs - Infections tropicales et méditerranéennes
4 CETAPS - Centre d’études des transformations des activités physiques et sportives
5 COMETE - Mobilités : Vieillissement, Pathologie, Santé
6 ICORE - Interactions Cellules Organismes Environnement

The standard in vitro cultivation procedure for Plasmodium falciparum requires gas exchange and a microaerophilic atmosphere. A novel system using a commercially available cell culture device (Petaka G3™; Celartia Ltd., Powell, OH) was assessed for long-term cultivation of a P. falciparum reference laboratory clone in normal air. Parasite growth during 30 days was similar, or better, in Petaka G3 than that in the standard cultivation method with gas exchange in a CO2 incubator. The successful cultivation of P. falciparum in the Petaka G3 device suggests that low O2 content available in hemoglobin and dissolved gas in the blood is sufficient for long-term cultivation. This finding may open the way to novel methods to cultivate and adapt P. falciparum field isolates to in vitro conditions with more ease.

Domaines: Cancer

Antoine Géry, Leonardo Basco, Natacha Heutte, Marilyne Guillamin, Ho-Mai-Thy N’guyen, et al.. Long-Term In vitro Cultivation of Plasmodium falciparum in a Novel Cell Culture Device. American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 2019, 100 (4), pp.822-827. ⟨10.4269/ajtmh.18-0527⟩. ⟨hal-02358590⟩