More malaria gene codes drawn up
Updated on 09 October 2008
Two new genetic blueprints of malaria parasites have been drawn up by scientists.
Six years ago, researchers sequenced the genetic code of Plasmodium falciparum, the most lethal of the organisms that cause malaria.
Now two more Plasmodium parasites were added to the list. One is P. vivax, the most widespread of the single-celled animals and the most common cause of benign but recurring malaria. The other is P. knowlesi, a monkey parasite that is now being recognised as a significant cause of human malaria.
P. vivax is the species most common outside Africa and is becoming increasingly resistant to some antimalarial drugs. It is especially prevalent in Asia and South America and responsible for up to 40% of the 515 million malaria infections that occur worldwide each year.
Little research has been done on P. vivax compared with P. falciparum, the species responsible for 90% of malaria deaths, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. The P. vivax genome turned out to be more similar to that of P. falciparum than was expected.
Analysis of its genetic code revealed mechanisms for infecting human blood cells that could provide new targets for treatment.
Dr Jane Carlton, from New York University Medical Centre in the US, who led the P. vivax study, said: "These findings will be used by all malariologists for years to come to advance scientific investigation into this neglected species."
P. knowlesi is the fifth parasite known to cause malaria in humans. It is most common in south-east Asia and can be life threatening. Initially found in monkeys, the organism was only identified in two cases of human infection before 2004. Now many cases previously thought to have been caused by the species P. malariae are known to be due to P. knowlesi.
Studying its genome revealed DNA elements that closely resemble a key human gene involved in regulating the immune system. This may help the organism stop the immune system recognising and eliminating infected red blood cells.
Both studies were published in the journal Nature.
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