Genome sequence of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum

Gardner, M. J., Hall, N., Fung, E., White, O., Berriman, M., Hyman, R. W., Carlton, J. M., Pain, A., Nelson, K. E., Bowman, S., Paulsen, I. T., James, K., Eisen, J. A., Rutherford, K., Salzberg, S. L., Craig, Alister ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0914-6164, Kyes, S., Chan, M. S., Nene, V., Shallom, S. J., Suh, B., Peterson, J., Angiuoli, S., Pertea, M., Allen, J., Selengut, J., Haft, D., Mather, M. W., Vaidya, A. B., Martin, D. M. A., Fairlamb, A. H., Fraunholz, M. J., Roos, D. S., Ralph, S. A., McFadden, G. I., Cummings, L. M., Subramanian, G. M., Mungall, C., Venter, J. C., Carucci, D. J., Hoffman, S. L., Newbold, C., Davis, R. W., Fraser, C. M. and Barrell, B. (2002) 'Genome sequence of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum'. Nature, Vol 419, Issue 6906, pp. 498-511.

Full text not available from this repository.

Abstract

The parasite Plasmodium falciparum is responsible for hundreds of millions of cases of malaria, and kills more than one million African children annually. Here we report an analysis of the genome sequence of P. falciparum clone 3D7. The 23-megabase nuclear genome consists of 14 chromosomes, encodes about 5,300 genes, and is the most (A + T)-rich genome sequenced to date. Genes involved in antigenic variation are concentrated in the subtelomeric regions of the chromosomes. Compared to the genomes of free-living eukaryotic microbes, the genome of this intracellular parasite encodes fewer enzymes and transporters, but a large proportion of genes are devoted to immune evasion and host-parasite interactions. Many nuclear-encoded proteins are targeted to the apicoplast, an organelle involved in fatty-acid and isoprenoid metabolism. The genome sequence provides the foundation for future studies of this organism, and is being exploited in the search for new drugs and vaccines to fight malaria.

Item Type:	Article
Subjects:	QU Biochemistry > Genetics > QU 470 Genetic structures QX Parasitology > Protozoa > QX 135 Plasmodia WC Communicable Diseases > Tropical and Parasitic Diseases > WC 750 Malaria
Digital Object Identifer (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1038/nature01097
Depositing User:	Martin Chapman
Date Deposited:	04 Jun 2013 10:28
Last Modified:	21 Nov 2024 16:08
URI:	https://archive.lstmed.ac.uk/id/eprint/2916

Statistics

View details

Actions (login required)

Edit Item