{"gene":"PBANKA_0406600","run_date":"2026-09-07T12:57:05+00:00","timeline":{"discoveries":[{"year":2017,"finding":"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) was identified as a candidate interacting partner of PhIL1 via immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry of the gametocyte inner membrane complex (IMC), placing it as a component of the PhIL1-associated IMC complex in P. falciparum gametocytes.","method":"Immunoprecipitation followed by mass spectrometry","journal":"PLoS pathogens","confidence":"Low","confidence_rationale":"Tier 3 / Weak — single Co-IP/MS experiment identifying PIC4 as a candidate interacting protein; no direct functional characterization of PIC4 itself reported in the abstract","pmids":["28985225"],"is_preprint":false,"attribution":[{"species":"Plasmodium falciparum","strain":""}]},{"year":2021,"finding":"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) was identified as a candidate IMC protein enriched in a BioID proximity-labelling proteomics screen using PhIL1 as bait in P. falciparum asexual blood-stage parasites, consistent with its membership in the PhIL1-associated IMC complex.","method":"Proximity-dependent biotin identification (BioID) followed by mass spectrometry","journal":"Cellular microbiology","confidence":"Low","confidence_rationale":"Tier 3 / Weak — proximity-labelling proteomics identifies PIC4 as a candidate; no direct functional or localization validation of PIC4 itself is described in the abstract","pmids":["33830607"],"is_preprint":false,"attribution":[{"species":"Plasmodium falciparum","strain":""}]}],"current_model":"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) is a candidate component of the PhIL1-associated inner membrane complex, identified by co-immunoprecipitation/mass spectrometry and BioID proximity proteomics in Plasmodium falciparum; no direct functional, structural, or localization experiments have been reported for PIC4 itself in the available literature."},"narrative":{"mechanistic_narrative":"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) is a candidate component of the PhIL1-associated inner membrane complex (IMC) in Plasmodium falciparum, identified solely through interaction proteomics: it was recovered as a candidate PhIL1 partner by immunoprecipitation/mass spectrometry of the gametocyte IMC [PMID:28985225] and again as a PhIL1-proximal protein in a BioID proximity-labelling screen in asexual blood-stage parasites [PMID:33830607]. Both lines of evidence position PIC4 within the PhIL1 interaction neighborhood rather than assigning it an independent activity. Beyond its candidate membership in the PhIL1-associated IMC complex [PMID:28985225, PMID:33830607], no direct functional, structural, or localization data for PIC4 itself have been characterized in the available corpus.","teleology":[{"year":2017,"claim":"To define the composition of the PhIL1-associated inner membrane complex, PIC4 was first placed in that complex as a candidate PhIL1 interactor, establishing its earliest association with the IMC.","evidence":"Immunoprecipitation followed by mass spectrometry of the gametocyte IMC in P. falciparum","pmids":["28985225"],"confidence":"Low","gaps":["Single Co-IP/MS experiment identifying PIC4 as a candidate; no reciprocal pulldown from PIC4 as bait","No direct localization of PIC4 to the IMC demonstrated","No functional role for PIC4 established"],"attribution":[{"species":"Plasmodium falciparum","strain":""}]},{"year":2021,"claim":"To test whether the PhIL1 association held in a different developmental stage and by an orthogonal method, PIC4 was recovered near PhIL1 in asexual blood-stage parasites, corroborating its candidate IMC-complex membership.","evidence":"BioID proximity-dependent biotin labelling with PhIL1 as bait, followed by mass spectrometry, in P. falciparum asexual blood stages","pmids":["33830607"],"confidence":"Low","gaps":["Proximity labelling identifies PIC4 as a candidate but does not confirm a direct interaction or IMC localization of PIC4","No functional validation (knockout, knockdown, tagging) of PIC4 itself","No structural or biochemical characterization of PIC4"],"attribution":[{"species":"Plasmodium falciparum","strain":""}]},{"year":null,"claim":"It remains unknown what PIC4 does at the molecular level, where it localizes, and whether it is functionally required, since all evidence to date is candidate-level interaction proteomics without direct characterization of PIC4 itself.","evidence":"No direct functional, localization, or structural experiment on PIC4 reported in the available corpus","pmids":[],"confidence":"Low","gaps":["No confirmed subcellular localization of PIC4","No molecular activity or substrate identified for PIC4","No genetic or phenotypic data (essentiality, stage-specific role) for PIC4"],"attribution":[{"species":"Plasmodium falciparum","strain":""}]}],"mechanism_profile":{"molecular_activity":[],"localization":[],"pathway":[],"complexes":["PhIL1-associated inner membrane complex (IMC) — candidate member [#0, #1]"],"partners":["PHIL1 (CANDIDATE ASSOCIATION BY IP/MS AND BIOID) [#0, #1]"],"other_free_text":["PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) is known only as a candidate component of the PhIL1-associated IMC complex identified by interaction proteomics; nothing about its own function, localization, or structure has been characterized in the available corpus.","Evidence derives entirely from Plasmodium falciparum experiments in which PhIL1, not PIC4, was the bait."]}},"prefetch_data":{},"corpus_meta":[{"pmid":"28985225","id":"PMC_28985225","title":"Disrupting assembly of the inner membrane complex blocks Plasmodium falciparum sexual stage development.","date":"2017","source":"PLoS pathogens","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28985225","citation_count":65,"is_preprint":false,"source_species":["Pb"],"role":"primary","match_terms":["PhIL1"],"competing_organism_flag":false,"competing_organism_match":"","competing_organism_only":false},{"pmid":"33830607","id":"PMC_33830607","title":"Identification of novel inner membrane complex and apical annuli proteins of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum.","date":"2021","source":"Cellular microbiology","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33830607","citation_count":33,"is_preprint":false,"source_species":["Pb"],"role":"primary","match_terms":["PhIL1"],"competing_organism_flag":false,"competing_organism_match":"","competing_organism_only":false},{"pmid":"29138437","id":"PMC_29138437","title":"Photosensitized INA-Labelled protein 1 (PhIL1) is novel component of the inner membrane complex and is required for Plasmodium parasite development.","date":"2017","source":"Scientific reports","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29138437","citation_count":25,"is_preprint":false,"source_species":["Pb"],"role":"primary","match_terms":["PhIL1"],"competing_organism_flag":false,"competing_organism_match":"","competing_organism_only":false},{"pmid":"34324609","id":"PMC_34324609","title":"Plasmodium falciparum PhIL1-associated complex plays an essential role in merozoite reorientation and invasion of host erythrocytes.","date":"2021","source":"PLoS pathogens","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34324609","citation_count":10,"is_preprint":false,"source_species":["Pb"],"role":"primary","match_terms":["PhIL1"],"competing_organism_flag":false,"competing_organism_match":"","competing_organism_only":false},{"pmid":"39576115","id":"PMC_39576115","title":"An inner membrane complex protein IMC1g in Plasmodium berghei is involved in asexual stage schizogony and parasite transmission.","date":"2024","source":"mBio","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39576115","citation_count":6,"is_preprint":false,"source_species":["Pb"],"role":"primary","match_terms":["PhIL1"],"competing_organism_flag":false,"competing_organism_match":"","competing_organism_only":false}],"cost":{"stage1":{"model":"claude-sonnet-4-6","input_tokens":5469,"output_tokens":602,"usd":0.012719,"stage1_stop_reason":"end_turn"},"stage2":{"model":"claude-opus-4-8","input_tokens":5192,"output_tokens":1473,"usd":0.031392,"stage2_stop_reason":"end_turn"},"total_usd":0.0,"stage1_batch_id":"msgbatch_01BW7vvc7h5iV39oJ1MHMzXw","stage2_batch_id":"msgbatch_01Kh5HbgbPXepNfNCbktYkSD","note":"batch pricing = 50% of standard","skipped":true},"stage1_raw":"```json\n{\n  \"discoveries\": [\n    {\n      \"year\": 2017,\n      \"finding\": \"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) was identified as a candidate interacting partner of PhIL1 via immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry of the gametocyte inner membrane complex (IMC), placing it as a component of the PhIL1-associated IMC complex in P. falciparum gametocytes.\",\n      \"method\": \"Immunoprecipitation followed by mass spectrometry\",\n      \"journal\": \"PLoS pathogens\",\n      \"confidence\": \"Low\",\n      \"confidence_rationale\": \"Tier 3 / Weak — single Co-IP/MS experiment identifying PIC4 as a candidate interacting protein; no direct functional characterization of PIC4 itself reported in the abstract\",\n      \"pmids\": [\"28985225\"],\n      \"is_preprint\": false,\n      \"attribution\": [\n        {\"species\": \"Plasmodium falciparum\", \"strain\": \"\"}\n      ]\n    },\n    {\n      \"year\": 2021,\n      \"finding\": \"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) was identified as a candidate IMC protein enriched in a BioID proximity-labelling proteomics screen using PhIL1 as bait in P. falciparum asexual blood-stage parasites, consistent with its membership in the PhIL1-associated IMC complex.\",\n      \"method\": \"Proximity-dependent biotin identification (BioID) followed by mass spectrometry\",\n      \"journal\": \"Cellular microbiology\",\n      \"confidence\": \"Low\",\n      \"confidence_rationale\": \"Tier 3 / Weak — proximity-labelling proteomics identifies PIC4 as a candidate; no direct functional or localization validation of PIC4 itself is described in the abstract\",\n      \"pmids\": [\"33830607\"],\n      \"is_preprint\": false,\n      \"attribution\": [\n        {\"species\": \"Plasmodium falciparum\", \"strain\": \"\"}\n      ]\n    }\n  ],\n  \"current_model\": \"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) is a candidate component of the PhIL1-associated inner membrane complex, identified by co-immunoprecipitation/mass spectrometry and BioID proximity proteomics in Plasmodium falciparum; no direct functional, structural, or localization experiments have been reported for PIC4 itself in the available literature.\"\n}\n```","stage2_raw":"{\n  \"mechanistic_narrative\": \"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) is a candidate component of the PhIL1-associated inner membrane complex (IMC) in Plasmodium falciparum, identified solely through interaction proteomics: it was recovered as a candidate PhIL1 partner by immunoprecipitation/mass spectrometry of the gametocyte IMC [#0] and again as a PhIL1-proximal protein in a BioID proximity-labelling screen in asexual blood-stage parasites [#1]. Both lines of evidence position PIC4 within the PhIL1 interaction neighborhood rather than assigning it an independent activity. Beyond its candidate membership in the PhIL1-associated IMC complex [#0, #1], no direct functional, structural, or localization data for PIC4 itself have been characterized in the available corpus.\",\n  \"teleology\": [\n    {\n      \"year\": 2017,\n      \"claim\": \"To define the composition of the PhIL1-associated inner membrane complex, PIC4 was first placed in that complex as a candidate PhIL1 interactor, establishing its earliest association with the IMC.\",\n      \"evidence\": \"Immunoprecipitation followed by mass spectrometry of the gametocyte IMC in P. falciparum\",\n      \"pmids\": [\"28985225\"],\n      \"confidence\": \"Low\",\n      \"gaps\": [\n        \"Single Co-IP/MS experiment identifying PIC4 as a candidate; no reciprocal pulldown from PIC4 as bait\",\n        \"No direct localization of PIC4 to the IMC demonstrated\",\n        \"No functional role for PIC4 established\"\n      ],\n      \"attribution\": [\n        {\"species\": \"Plasmodium falciparum\", \"strain\": \"\"}\n      ]\n    },\n    {\n      \"year\": 2021,\n      \"claim\": \"To test whether the PhIL1 association held in a different developmental stage and by an orthogonal method, PIC4 was recovered near PhIL1 in asexual blood-stage parasites, corroborating its candidate IMC-complex membership.\",\n      \"evidence\": \"BioID proximity-dependent biotin labelling with PhIL1 as bait, followed by mass spectrometry, in P. falciparum asexual blood stages\",\n      \"pmids\": [\"33830607\"],\n      \"confidence\": \"Low\",\n      \"gaps\": [\n        \"Proximity labelling identifies PIC4 as a candidate but does not confirm a direct interaction or IMC localization of PIC4\",\n        \"No functional validation (knockout, knockdown, tagging) of PIC4 itself\",\n        \"No structural or biochemical characterization of PIC4\"\n      ],\n      \"attribution\": [\n        {\"species\": \"Plasmodium falciparum\", \"strain\": \"\"}\n      ]\n    },\n    {\n      \"year\": null,\n      \"claim\": \"It remains unknown what PIC4 does at the molecular level, where it localizes, and whether it is functionally required, since all evidence to date is candidate-level interaction proteomics without direct characterization of PIC4 itself.\",\n      \"evidence\": \"No direct functional, localization, or structural experiment on PIC4 reported in the available corpus\",\n      \"pmids\": [],\n      \"confidence\": \"Low\",\n      \"gaps\": [\n        \"No confirmed subcellular localization of PIC4\",\n        \"No molecular activity or substrate identified for PIC4\",\n        \"No genetic or phenotypic data (essentiality, stage-specific role) for PIC4\"\n      ],\n      \"attribution\": [\n        {\"species\": \"Plasmodium falciparum\", \"strain\": \"\"}\n      ]\n    }\n  ],\n  \"mechanism_profile\": {\n    \"molecular_activity\": [],\n    \"localization\": [],\n    \"pathway\": [],\n    \"complexes\": [\"PhIL1-associated inner membrane complex (IMC) — candidate member [#0, #1]\"],\n    \"partners\": [\"PhIL1 (candidate association by IP/MS and BioID) [#0, #1]\"],\n    \"other_free_text\": [\n      \"PIC4 (PBANKA_0406600) is known only as a candidate component of the PhIL1-associated IMC complex identified by interaction proteomics; nothing about its own function, localization, or structure has been characterized in the available corpus.\",\n      \"Evidence derives entirely from Plasmodium falciparum experiments in which PhIL1, not PIC4, was the bait.\"\n    ]\n  }\n}","audit_flag":{"gene":"PBANKA_0406600","tier":"IDENTITY_CHECK","verdict":"identity unverified","subtype":"names_other_cards","uniprot_band":"","rules_fired":"R12","issue":"No cited paper names this card; 2 of 2 cited papers name other catalogue genes (PF3D7_0109000, PF3D7_1355600, PF3D7_1343700). The summary may describe one of those genes."},"strains":[{"strain":"PbANKA","gene_id":"PBANKA_0406600","name":null,"product":"conserved Plasmodium protein, unknown function","uniprot_acc":null,"chromosome":null,"start_pos":null},{"strain":"PkH","gene_id":"PKNH_0834400","name":null,"product":"PhIL1-interacting candidate PIC4, putative","uniprot_acc":null,"chromosome":null,"start_pos":null}],"gene_symbol":"","evaluation":null}