#plasmodium knowlesi

Plasmodium knowlesi

A new, comprehensive map of all the genes essential for blood infections in Plasmodium knowlesi (P. knowlesi), a parasite that causes malaria in humans, has been generated by researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and colleagues. The map contains the most complete classification of essential genes in any Plasmodium species and can be used to identify druggable parasite targets and mechanisms of drug resistance that can inform the development of new treatments for malaria. "We hope that our findings are a major step for the field of malaria research and control," said co-corresponding author Manoj Duraisingh, John LaPorte Given Professor of Immunology and Infectious Diseases. "Emerging drug resistance to the small number of antimalarial drugs is a growing problem. This map will be an invaluable resource to help researchers combat one of the leading causes of infectious disease death around the world." The study is published in Science.