Abstract
27
In sub-Saharan Africa, pregnant women are at greater risk of malaria infection than non -pregnant 28
adult women. The infection may lead to pregnancy-associated malaria (PAM) because of the sequestration 29
of Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes in the placental intervillous space. Although there are 30
several tools for diagnosing malaria infection during pregnancy , including blood smear microscopic 31
examination, rapid diagnostic tests, and PCR, there are no tools for detecting placental infection and, by 32
extension, any dysfunction associated with PAM. Thus, PAM, specifically placental infection, can only be 33
confirmed via postnatal placental histopathology. Therefore, there is an urgent need for s pecific serum 34
biomarkers of PAM. Here, we used the high throughput proximity extension assay to screen plasma from 35
malaria-exposed pregnant women for differentially expressed proteins that can predict PAM or adverse 36
malaria outcomes. Such biomarkers may also elucidate the pathophysiology of PAM. We observed that the 37
IgG Fc receptor IIb (Uniprot ID P31994) and HO-1 (P09601) are consistently highly expressed in malaria-38
positive samples compared to samples from malaria-negative pregnant women. On the contrary , NRTN 39
(Q99748) and IL-20 (Q9NYY1) were differentially expressed in the malaria -negative women . IL-20 40
exhibited the highest discriminatory power (AUC = 0.815), indicating a strong association with malaria 41
status. These proteins should be considered for further evaluation as biomarkers of malaria-induced 42
placental dysfunction in pregnant women. 43
44
Keywords
Pregnancy-associated malaria, malaria in pregnancy, biomarkers, falciparum m alaria, 45
proteomics, proximity extension assay 46
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3
Introduction
47
Pregnant women in most tropical areas are at an increased risk of malaria because of the placental 48
sequestration of Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum )-infected red blood cells, which can lead to 49
stillbirth and low birth weight [1]. Despite the availability of numerous diagnostic tools for detecting 50
malaria during pregnancy, there is a lack of a definitive test for determining actual placental infection and 51
dysfunction within the context of pregnancy -associated malaria (PAM) [2]. PAM has several similarities 52
with pre-eclampsia, for which several biomarkers of placental stress and dysfunction have been identified 53
[3,4]. While some of these biomarkers are inflammatory markers that lack specificity, others , such as s -54
endoglin and sFlt1, which are elevated in peripheral blood during pre -eclampsia, appear more specific to 55
placental dysfunction [5]. The predictive value of such biomarkers should be evaluated in the context of 56
PAM to determine their effectiveness as indicators of PAM-associated placental infection and dysfunction 57
[6]. This is crucial for enhancing the diagnosis of typically sub-microscopic malaria infections and malaria-58
induced placental dysfunction, thereby facilitating timely intervention in pregnant women. Indeed, 59
comprehension of disease biology and the interaction between the malaria parasite and the human host is 60
crucial for developing diagnostic, prognostic, and uncovering predictive biomarkers for PAM [7]. 61
Elucidating the expression patterns of plasma proteins can provide insights into how PAM affects placental, 62
maternal, or fetal wellbeing [6,8]. 63
64
The rapid development of proteomics platforms , such as multiplex proximity extension assay 65
(PEA), offers highly effective, high-throughput strategies for studying malaria -associated molecular 66
pathophysiological changes [9]. PEA technology enables simultaneous measurement of a large number of 67
proteins using minute amount of sample [7,10]. Studies using this approach have demonstrated its clinical 68
utility in identifying important biomarkers for various diseases, including cancer, long COVID, ischemic 69
stroke, and early pregnancy bleeding [10–15]. In this study, we used PEA to screen sera from pregnant, 70
malaria-exposed women to identify differentially expressed proteins. Using this strategy, we identified four 71
proteins significantly differentially expressed in samples from malaria-infected pregnant women compared 72
with non-infected pregnant counterparts , suggesting that their alteration is P. falciparum -driven. Such 73
proteins can potentially develop into biomarkers of PAM or adverse malaria outcomes. 74
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4
Material and methods
75
76
Study design & population. 77
78
This study used serum samples collected from women between 12 and 18 weeks of gestation. These 79
women were enrolled in the study during their routine antenatal clinic visits at Webuye County Hospital in 80
Bungoma County, Kenya, a region characterized by high malaria transmission [16]. The study protocol and 81
the use of this well-characterized biobank of samples were approved by the Independent Ethics Research 82
Committee (IERC) of Mount Kenya University (No# MKU/IERC/0543, MKU/IERC/2461). The enrolled 83
cohort consisted of women undergoing routine intermittent preventive malaria treatment in pregnancy 84
(IPTp) with sulfadoxine -pyrimethamine (IPTp -SP) [17]. All study participants gave w ritten informed 85
consent before joining the study. The study protocol complied with the International Conference on 86
Harmonization Good Clinical Practices and the Declaration of Helsinki guidelines [18]. Serum samples 87
were collected 4 weeks after IPTp administration and frozen immediately, and then transported on dry ice 88
to the Centre for Malaria Elimination laboratories at Mount Kenya University and immediately stored in a 89
-80°C deep freezer without cold-chain interruption. Each serum sample was matched with corresponding 90
anonymized demographic and pregnancy outcome data. Data on pregnancy progress and outcomes were 91
collected during the scheduled and unscheduled visits. Malaria diagnosis was performed using both 92
microscopy and a ParaCheck Rapid Diagnostic Kit (Orchid Biomedical Systems, India). 93
94
Protein abundance measurement by multiplex proximity extension assay 95
Multiplex PEA technology was used to analyze protein expression in the sera samples using the 96
Olink Inflammation and Cardiovascular II protein panels (Olink ™ Proteomics, Uppsala Sweden, 97
https://olink.com), loading 1µL sample/panel. These panels were selected since they target inflammatory 98
and vascular pathophysiological proteomic signatures, which were hypothesized to be altered by PAM. In 99
PEA, each target protein is recognized by two antibodies attached to single-stranded DNA oligonucleotide 100
[11]. When a pair of antibodies binds to the same target protein, the conjugated DNA oligonucleotides are 101
brought in proximity and hybridize to each other. Subsequently, the DNA molecules are extended to form 102
a double-stranded DNA as template for quantitative PCR amplification [11]. The results are presented as 103
normalized protein expression (NPX) values, which are arbitrary units on a log2 scale , where a one-unit 104
increase in NPX corresponds to a two-fold increase in protein concentration. The limit of detection (LOD) 105
for each protein was determined based on three times the standard deviation (SD) above the NPX value of 106
the negative controls in each run. In this study, a total of 183 different proteins were measured, where each 107
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5
panel included 92 proteins involved in diverse biological processes and 4 technical controls. Analyses were 108
performed at the Clinical Biomarker Facility at SciLifeLab, Uppsala University. 109
110
Data analysis 111
Data analyses were performed using R software (www.r -project.org). Normalized protein 112
expression (NPX) values were used for analysis because they tend to follow a normal distribution. Samples 113
from malaria infected group and the controls were randomized within the plates to minimize variability 114
between plates. The inter-plate variation was further normalized for each protein in each plate by adding a 115
z-score factor, which was calculated as follows: factor = (actual value - median of all samples) / standard 116
deviation. To compare malaria cases and controls, NPX values were adjusted if a significant effect (adjusted 117
p value < 0.05) f or age on protein levels was found by linear regression in both the control and malaria 118
groups. 119
For univariate analysis, the difference in protein levels between the malaria and non-malaria groups 120
was examined using linear regression, using age and gravida as covariates. The dependent variable was 121
NPX, and the independent variables were malaria status. The likelihood ratio test was used to assess the 122
significance of the difference. The statistical significance of the differences between two groups was 123
determined for continuous variables using the Mann–Whitney–Wilcoxon test. For categorical variables, the 124
Chi-square or Fisher's exact test was used. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) test was used to compare 125
more than two groups. The paired Mann–Whitney–Wilcoxon test was used to compare diff erent malaria 126
groups. Spearman's rank rho was used to test the correlation coefficients or collinearity between each 127
protein marker and other continuous variables. The Bonferroni–Dunn post hoc test was used to correct for 128
multiple testing by adjusting the p-values for false discovery rate. A difference was considered significant 129
if the q-value (adjusted p-value) was less than 0.05. 130
Additionally, elastic-net penalized logistic regression (ENLR) was used to identify a combination 131
of analytes that could improve the discrimination between cases and controls. ENLR applies a penalty to 132
the regression coefficients and finds groups of correlated variables. The optimal penalization proportion α 133
was determined using grid search with a 10-fold cross-validation. The optimal tuning parameter λ was 134
determined as the mean value of 100 iterative lambda values that minimized the model's deviance. The 135
regression coefficients were used to assess the contribution of individual proteins to the case -control 136
discrimination. The ENLR model was estimated using the R package glmnet [19]. The regression 137
coefficients for the selected proteins were then calculated by rerunning ENLR with only proteins with non-138
zero coefficients after 10 repetitions. To determine the number of proteins required to predict PAM, ROC 139
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curves were generated while adding one more protein at a time and then compared with the first ROC curve. 140
This process was repeated until none of the ROC curves showed significant improvement. 141
Results
142
143
Protein reactivity 144
PEA is optimal for quantification of the levels of soluble plasma proteins in small sample volumes. 145
Here, to identify proteins that might indicate P. falciparum infection during pregnancy, we probed the Olink 146
Target 96 Inflammation and Olink Target 96 Cardiovascular II Panels (Table S1) using serum samples 147
collected from 50 women, who were sampled at three different timepoints during pregnancy (Table 1). The 148
initial sampling was performed at 12–18 weeks of gestation and two more samples were collected one and 149
two months before delivery. Twelve (12) women (median age: 24 years, range: 20–29 years) had malaria 150
infection that was detectable using a rapid diagnostic test. The women in the different groups did not differ 151
significantly in terms of age, gravidity, hemoglobin levels, and gestational age. 152
153
154
Table 1. Characteristics of the women assessed in this study. 155
Characteristics
Malaria No Malaria Overall P value
(n=12) (n=38) (n=50)
Age in years at enrollment, mean (mean,
range)
24.0 (20.0 -
29.0) 27.3 (19.0 - 42.0) 26.9 (19.0 -
42.0)
0.7775
Gestation in weeks (mean, range)a 18.7 (10.0 -
26.0) 14.2 (4.0 - 28.0) 21.8 (4.0 -
28.0)
0.005
Gravida (range) 1.8 (1.0 - 3.0) 2.5 (1.0 - 5.0) 2.3 (1.0 - 5.0) 0.07
Hemoglobin (mean, IQR, g/dL) a 11.5 (7.6 -13.6) 12.8 (9.6 - 15.8) 12.5 (7.6 -
15.8)
0.011
Random sugar Levels (mean, IQR,
mmol/L) 5.4 (4.7 - 6.4) 4.9 (4.0 - 6.5) 5.0 (4.0-6.5) 0.10
156
a Statistically significant between the groups (P<0.05 Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon test; followed by 157
Bonferroni–Dunn post hoc test); =malaria was defined as any parasitemia with or without fever; 158
IQR = interquartile range; All participants were of the same ethnicity.159
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Protein reactivity and the characteristic of the sampled women 160
Protein reactivity to the proteomic panels was measured at three different visits per participant. 161
The pattern of expression profiles varied considerably among the volunteers, with most proteins being 162
present at different time points (first, second and third trimester) for most women. However, in about 163
10% of the women, less than 20 proteins were detected (Figure 1). 164
165
166
167
Figure 1: The pattern of plasma proteins expression among pregnant women volunteers 168
assessed from western Kenya. 169
170
To assess if there was any relationship between serum protein levels and participant 171
characteristics, such as age, gravida, and gestation al age, we conducted a correlation analysis to each 172
of these parameters against the NPX for each protein. Although there was no correlation between 173
protein levels and participant s’ age, overall plasma protein levels were higher in samples from 174
primigravida (first-time pregnant) women when compared with multigravida women (who have had 2–175
5 pregnancies), although the difference did not reach statistical significance (Table S2). 176
We further assessed the relationship between markers of morbidity, including hemoglobin and 177
random blood sugars, and expressed plasma proteins. We observed that 19 proteins were significantly 178
negatively correlated with hemoglobin levels , and 9 proteins with random blood sugar levels 179
(unadjusted P < 0.05). However, the correlations did not remain significant after False Discovery Rate 180
(FDR) adjustments. Our findings suggest that these proteins may have a role in malaria infection 181
or that they may be involved in the development and/or progression of pregnancy 182
complications, such as anemia and/or gestational diabetes. 183
184
Serum reactivity
[0%, 10%](10%, 20%](20%, 30%](30%, 40%](40%, 50%](50%, 60%](60%, 70%](70%, 80%](80%, 90%](90%, 100%]
Number of proteins
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Olink Target 96 Cardiovascular II and Inflammation
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8
Differential protein expression in malaria vs no malaria women 185
Next, we sought to identify differential protein expression in malaria vs non -malaria women. 186
This analysis showed that 48 p roteins were significantly differentially expressed in malaria vs no 187
malaria women, at least in one of the three clinic visits ( Table S2 ). Notably, IgG Fc receptor IIb 188
(Uniprot ID : P31994) and HO -1 (P09601) were consistently highly expressed in malaria -positive 189
samples when compared with malaria-negative samples, while NRTN (Q99748) and IL-20 (Q9NYY1) 190
were consistently highly expressed in sera from malaria-negative women (Figure 2). This data suggest 191
that malaria infection may downregulate or upregulate various proteins. 192
193
194
Figure 2: Differential protein expression in malaria-infected vs non malaria-infected women. 195
The title represent protein Uniprot acronym and ID. Relative PEA counts are derived from 196
NPX/ LOD to allow protein-to-protein comparison. 197
198
We therefore sought to assess if the levels of these proteins fluctuated during the antepartum 199
period using samples collected at different pregnancy timepoints. Except for IL-20, whose serum levels 200
reduced during the follow-up period, there was no significant change in the other proteins, suggesting 201
that the initial induction by malaria infection did not alter the levels of these proteins during the follow-202
up period. The top differentially expressed proteins are presented in Figure 3, and the full protein list 203
is presented in Supplementary Tables S3. 204
205
206
1.5
2.0
2.5
IgG.Fc.receptor.II.b_P31994
Malaria in pregnancy status
PEA counts
Malaria No malaria
8.5
9.0
9.5
10.0
10.5
HO.1_P09601
Malaria in pregnancy status
PEA counts
Malaria No malaria
0.5
1.0
1.5
NRTN_Q99748
Malaria in pregnancy status
PEA counts
Malaria No malaria
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
IL.20_Q9NYY1
Malaria in pregnancy status
PEA counts
Malaria No malaria
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207
Figure 3: Kinetics of protein expression in malaria-infected vs non-malaria-infected women at 208
three time points during the pregnancy – 1st (red), 2nd (green) and 3rd Visit (blue). * Represent 209
statistical difference between hospital visits, (Kruskal Wallis, P < 0.005). 210
211
Protein levels could distinguish malaria cases vs controls 212
We also assessed whether a combination of serum proteins could distinguish malaria cases vs 213
controls. This analysis revealed varying predictive performance among the four proteins we examined 214
in relation to malaria status. IL-20 (Q9NYY1) protein exhibited the highest discriminatory power (AUC 215
= 0.815), indicating a strong association with malaria status (Figure 4) . This suggests that IL -20 216
expression levels serve as a promising biomarker for malaria diagnosis or prognosis. IgG Fc receptor 217
IIb (Uniprot ID: P31994) protein demonstrated moderate discriminatory ability (AUC = 0.717), 218
suggesting a notable but less pronounced association with malaria status compared to IL-20. Similarly, 219
HO-1 (P09601) protein also displayed moderate discriminatory power (AUC = 0.729), indicating some 220
association with malaria status, although not as strong as IL -20. NRTN (Q99748) protein, with the 221
lowest AUC value (AUC = 0.635), showed weaker discriminatory ability compared to the other proteins. 222
Although NRTN expression levels may still have some association with malaria status, the association 223
is less pronounced compared to IL-20, IgG Fc receptor IIb, and HO-1. 224
225
malaria no malaria
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0
IgG.Fc.receptor.II.b_P31994
Malaria in Pregnancy status
PEA counts
1 2 3
malaria no malaria
8.0
8.5
9.0
9.5
10.0
10.5
HO.1_P09601
Malaria in Pregnancy status
PEA counts
malaria no malaria
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
NRTN_Q99748
Malaria in Pregnancy status
PEA counts
malaria no malaria
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
IL.20_Q9NYY1
Malaria in Pregnancy status
PEA counts
*
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10
226
227
Figure 4: ROC curves for different protein expression levels in malaria- vs non-malaria-228
infected women. Each protein has been assigned a colour code, as indicated in the legend. 229
230
231
Discussion
232
Accurate tools for diagnosing malaria during pregnancy are urgently needed to guide effective clinical 233
interventions [20]. In this study, we aimed to identify potential markers of malaria infection by using 234
high-throughput PEA technology. We observed that IgG Fc receptor IIb (Uniprot ID, P31994), HO -1 235
(P09601), NRTN (Q99748) and IL-20 (Q9NYY1) were differentially expressed in sera from malaria-236
infected pregnant women vs from non-malaria-infected controls. Moreover, these proteins may also 237
highlight processes that underlie malaria pathophysiology during pregnancy. 238
239
IgG Fc receptor IIb (FCGR2B, Uniprot ID, P31994), a low affinity immunoglobulin gamma Fc 240
region receptor, has multiple isoforms in macrophages, lymphocytes, and IgG -transporting placental 241
epithelium [21]. It is the only inhibitory Fc receptor that controls many aspects of immune and 242
inflammatory responses [22]. Variations in the gene encoding this protein , such as loss -of-function 243
polymorphism, have implications for autoimmunity and infection, including severe malaria. FCGR2B 244
is involved in several processes, including Fc receptor-mediated immune complex endocytosis, nervous 245
system development, and immune responses [23]. Other studies have identified FCGR2B as a marker 246
of human metastatic melanoma, where its expression impairs the tumor susceptibility to FcgammaR -247
dependent innate effector responses [24]. With the availability of monoclonal antibodies against 248
FCGR2B [25], studies are needed to evaluate its potential as a biomarker of PAM. 249
250
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11
We also identified HO -1 (heme oxygenase-1) as abundantly expressed in PAM cases. HO-1 251
plays a crucial role in heme degradation and cellular responses to stress [26]. During pregnancy, HO-1 252
maintains a balanced immune response and supports healthy placental development [27]. Evidence 253
from a mouse model [27] indicates that it helps protect against oxidative stress and inflammation, which 254
are often elevated in pregnancy-associated conditions. We hypothesize that in the context of pregnancy-255
associated malaria, HO-1 may play a role in mitigating the adverse effects of the infection by reducing 256
oxidative stress and inflammation. 257
258
Two other proteins that decreased in PAM cases, Neurturin (NRTN) and Interleukin-20 (IL-259
20), deserve further evaluation. NRTN has been implicated in supporting healthy placental growth and 260
development. It is also involved in the regulation of blood vessel formation and trophoblast invasion, 261
which are critical for successful pregnancy outcomes [28]. IL-20 plays a critical role in the development 262
and maintenance of the placenta, as well as in the regulation of trophoblast invasion, angiogenesis and 263
vascular remodeling [29]. Thus, IL-20 downregulation during PAM might contribute to poor pregnancy 264
outcomes. Indeed, disruptions in IL -20 signaling have been associated with adverse pregnancy 265
outcomes [30]. In the context of pregnancy-associated malaria, IL-20 may modulate the inflammatory 266
response and placental immune tolerance, potentially impacting the severity and outcomes of the 267
infection. These molecules need further evaluation. 268
269
The choice of two Olink panels, Inflammation and Cardiovascular II, provided a wide repertoire 270
of proteins with a critical role during pregnancy or with diagnostic capability for assessing malaria 271
infection of the placenta. However, the panels could have excluded other potentially important 272
proteomic targets, and future studies should aim to include a more diverse range of proteins. This study 273
involved a relatively small sample size and was based on a single study center. Hence, these 274
observations warrant further validation using larger, multicenter malaria-in-pregnancy cohorts. Because 275
this study is correlative, future studies will also seek to experimentally validate the involvement of the 276
identified factors in malaria during pregnancy and the underlying mechanisms, which may uncover 277
additional diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. 278
279
In conclusion, this study identified four proteins that were differentially regulated between 280
malaria and non-malaria women. Through further investi gation, expression of these proteins could 281
potentially be validated for diagnosis of pregnancy-associated malaria. 282
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Acknowledgements
283
We appreciate the study volunteers from Webuye County Hospital and thank the research teams 284
from Mount Kenya University for their technical assistance in obtaining and processing the field samples. 285
286
Funding 287
This work was funded by InDevelops u-landsfond InDevelops u-landsfond grant to MKM and JG, 288
African Academy of Sciences to JG , and the Swedish Research Council under the grant 2020 -02258 to 289
MKM. BNK is an EDCTP Fellow under EDCTP2 programme supported by the European Union grant 290
number TMA2020CDF-3203-EndPAMAL. BNK has also received support from Terumo Life Science 291
Foundation. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or 292
preparation of the manuscript. 293
294
Competing interests 295
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial 296
relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. 297
298
Authors contribution 299
BNK, MKM, MV and JG conceived and designed experiments. FMK, HW, JM, and RG 300
conducted experiments. BNK, RG, FMK, and HW analyzed the data. BNK, FMK, and JG wrote the 301
manuscript. All authors discussed and edited the manuscript. 302
303
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