During the asexual cycle, Plasmodium falciparum extensively remodels the human erythrocyte to make it a suitable host cell. A large number of exported proteins facilitate this remodeling process, which causes erythrocytes to become more rigid, cytoadherent, and permeable for nutrients and metabolic products. Among the exported proteins, a family of 89 proteins, called the Plasmodium helical interspersed subtelomeric (PHIST) protein family, has been identified. While also found in other Plasmodium species, the PHIST family is greatly expanded in P. falciparum. Although a decade has passed since their first description, to date, most PHIST proteins remain uncharacterized and are of unknown function and localization within the host cell, and there are few data on their interactions with other host or parasite proteins. However, over the past few years, PHIST proteins have been mentioned in the literature at an increasing rate owing to their presence at various localizations within the infected erythrocyte. Expression of PHIST proteins has been implicated in molecular and cellular processes such as the surface display of PfEMP1, gametocytogenesis, changes in cell rigidity, and also cerebral and pregnancy-associated malaria. Thus, we conclude that PHIST proteins are central to host cell remodeling, but despite their obvious importance in pathology, PHIST proteins seem to be understudied. Here we review current knowledge, shed light on the definition of PHIST proteins, and discuss these proteins with respect to their localization and probable function. We take into consideration interaction studies, microarray analyses, or data from blood samples from naturally infected patients to combine all available information on this protein family.

中文翻译：

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位于宿主细胞重塑中心的疟原虫螺旋散布亚端粒 (PHIST) 蛋白。

在无性周期中，恶性疟原虫广泛改造人类红细胞，使其成为合适的宿主细胞。大量输出的蛋白质促进了这一重塑过程，这导致红细胞变得更加僵硬、细胞粘附，并且对营养物质和代谢产物具有渗透性。在输出的蛋白质中，已鉴定出一个由 89 种蛋白质组成的家族，称为疟原虫螺旋散布亚端粒 (PHIST) 蛋白质家族。虽然在其他疟原虫物种中也发现了 PHIST 家族，但它在恶性疟原虫中大大扩展。尽管自首次描述以来已经过去了十年，但迄今为止，大多数 PHIST 蛋白仍未被表征，并且在宿主细胞内的功能和定位未知，并且很少有关于它们与其他宿主或寄生虫蛋白相互作用的数据。然而，在过去的几年里，PHIST 蛋白在文献中被提及的频率越来越高，因为它们存在于受感染的红细胞内的不同位置。PHIST 蛋白的表达与分子和细胞过程有关，例如 PfEMP1 的表面展示、配子细胞生成、细胞刚性的变化，以及脑和妊娠相关的疟疾。因此，我们得出结论，PHIST 蛋白是宿主细胞重塑的核心，但尽管它们在病理学中具有明显的重要性，但 PHIST 蛋白似乎未被充分研究。在这里，我们回顾了当前的知识，阐明了 PHIST 蛋白质的定义，并讨论了这些蛋白质的定位和可能的功能。我们考虑到相互作用研究、微阵列分析、