Chester Joyner

Research

Dr. Joyner conducts research on the parasite Plasmodium vivax, which is a major cause of malaria – a life-threatening mosquito-borne disease responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths globally each year. P. vivax remains a major obstacle for malaria elimination, due to its ability to form dormant stages in the liver. These forms can become activated to cause relapsing blood-stage infections. Relapses in human patients remain poorly understood, because it is difficult to verify whether P. vivax blood-stage infections are due to new infections or relapses.

Dr. Joyner also studies rhesus macaques infected with Plasmodium cynomolgi, a model of P. vivax, and assessed pathogenesis, host responses and circulating gametocyte levels during relapses. Compared to initial infections, relapses are clinically silent — no fever or signs of inflammation — and they are associated with a robust memory B cell response. Memory B cells are the immune system’s “reserve library” for antibody production. Relapse responses did result in the production of antibodies that were able to mediate clearance of parasites. Despite this rapid immune protection, sexual-stage gametocytes, which may be infectious to mosquitoes, continued to circulate.

Education

PhD, Immunology and Molecular Pathogenesis, Emory University

BS, Biology, Georgia Southern University

Recent Publications

Nguyen DC, Joyner CJ, Sanz I, Lee FE. Factors Affecting Early Antibody Secreting Cell Maturation Into Long-Lived Plasma Cells. 2019. Front. Immunol. 10:2138

Joyner CJ, Brito CFA, Saney CL, Joice Cordy R, Smith ML, Lapp SA, Cabrera-Mora M, Kyu S, Lackman N, Nural MV, DeBarry JD; MaHPIC Consortium, Kissinger JC, Styczynski MP, Lee FE, Lamb TJ, Galinski MR. Humoral immunity prevents clinical malaria during Plasmodium relapses without eliminating gametocytes. 2019. PLoS Pathog. 15(9):e1007974.

Chua ACY, Ong JJY, Malleret B, Suwanarusk R, Kosaisavee V, Zeeman AM, Cooper CA, Tan KSW, Zhang R, Tan BH, Abas SN, Yip A, Elliot A, Joyner CJ, Cho JS, Breyer K, Baran S, Lange A, Maher SP, Nosten F, Bodenreider C, Yeung BKS, Mazier D, Galinski MR, Dereuddre-Bosquet N, Le Grand R, Kocken CHM, Rénia L, Kyle DE, Diagana TT, Snounou G, Russell B, Bifani P. Robust continuous in vitro culture of the Plasmodium cynomolgi erythrocytic stages. 2019. 10(1):3635.

Cordy RJ, Patrapuvich R, Lili LN, Cabrera-Mora M, Chien JT, Tharp GK, Khadka M, Meyer EV, Lapp SA, Joyner CJ, Garcia A, Banton S, Tran V, Luvira V, Rungin S, Saeseu T, Rachaphaew N, Pakala SB, DeBarry JD; MaHPIC Consortium, Kissinger JC, Ortlund EA, Bosinger SE, Barnwell JW, Jones DP, Uppal K, Li S, Sattabongkot J, Moreno A, Galinski MR. Distinct amino acid and lipid perturbations characterize acute versus chronic malaria. 2019. 4(9). pii: 125156.

Peterson MS, Joyner CJ, Cordy RJ, Salinas JL, Machiah D, Lapp SA; MaHPIC Consortium, Meyer EVS, Gumber S, Galinski MR. Plasmodium vivax Parasite Load Is Associated With Histopathology in Saimiri boliviensis With Findings Comparable to P vivax Pathogenesis in Humans. 2019. 6(3):ofz021

News

UGA researchers developing new models for malaria drug development and testing

All the pieces matter: UGA researchers collaborate to solve malaria puzzle

Chet Joyner receives $1.1 million grant to study malaria vaccine