Publication Date:
2019-07-10
Description:
Plasmodium falciparum, the protozoan parasite responsible for most human malaria, is among the most studied pathogens of all time, probably only exceeded by the human immunodeficiency virus HTV and the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The extent of human suffering and the devastating costs of malaria have long been recognized by world bodies, and numerous initiatives have been taken over the years in an effort to defeat this insidious microbe. Beginning in 1996, an international consortium of scientists from more than a dozen institutions set about to determine the sequence of the organism's 23-megabase genome. Their massive effort-which ended up going well beyond simple sequencing is reported in this special issue of Nature. The avowed goal of the project was to search for chinks in the parasite's armor so that new and effective drugs and vaccines might be developed.
Keywords:
Life Sciences (General)
Type:
Nature News and Views: Special Malaria Issue
Format:
text
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