Figure 2

The real-time observation of RhoA GTPase being recruited to the parasitophorous vacuole membrane (PVM) following T. gondii tachyzoites invasion (1000×). (A-F) Starting from 0 min after the tachyzoites being added to the COS-7 cells transfected with pECFP-RhoA-WT, the invasion of tachyzoites into the host cell was visualized under a confocal microscope and pictures were taken at 5 min intervals. The CFP-tagged RhoA on the host cell membrane is recruited to the PVM at the same time as the tachyzoites started to invade the host cell (A, pink arrowhead). The accumulation of the RhoA to the PVM continued with the invasion of the tachyzoite into the host cell (B-D, pink arrowhead), until the whole tachyzoite was totally recruited into the host cell (E, white and yellow arrowhead). The loading of the RhoA GTPase onto the PVM continued after the tachyzoite was totally within the host cell, in this case, probably through the means of diffusion from the host cell cytosol (E-H, white and yellow arrowhead). The green fluorescence and the DIC images showing the observation of the invasion processes are provided in Additional file 1: Data S1 and Additional file 2: Data S2. Bar: 10 μm.