Development and Application of a Simple Plaque Assay for the Human Malaria Parasite Plasmodium falciparum.

ABSTRACT: Malaria is caused by an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite that replicates within and destroys erythrocytes. Asexual blood stages of the causative agent of the most virulent form of human malaria, Plasmodium falciparum, can be cultivated indefinitely in vitro in human erythrocytes, facilitating experimental analysis of parasite cell biology, biochemistry and genetics. However, efforts to improve understanding of the basic biology of this important pathogen and to develop urgently required new antimalarial drugs and vaccines, suffer from a paucity of basic research tools. This includes a simple means of quantifying the effects of drugs, antibodies and gene modifications on parasite fitness and replication rates. Here we describe the development and validation of an extremely simple,

SUBMITTER: Thomas JA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4917082 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature