The pH of the Plasmodium falciparum digestive vacuole: holy grail or dead-end trail?

The maintenance of acidic pH in the digestive vacuole of the malaria parasite is thought to be crucial to the digestion of host cell haemoglobin and the subsequent process of heme detoxification. It may also be important in the mode of action of chloroquine and in the mechanism of resistance to the drug. Obtaining a definitive measurement of digestive vacuole pH has been surprisingly difficult. Some of the techniques for the measurement of pH in acid vesicles are outlined here along with some key aspects that are specific to malaria parasites. The use of acridine orange and dextran-tagged dyes as probes for the measurement of digestive vacuole pH has proved problematic, yet some surprising findings have emerged from work with these compounds. Recent studies of P. faciparum digestive vacuole pH have raised more questions than answers, but have hinted that this organelle may be a dump for waste products, rather than a metabolic headquarters.