A comparative transcriptomic analysis of replicating and dormant liver stages of the relapsing malaria parasite Plasmodium cynomolgi.

ABSTRACT: Plasmodium liver hypnozoites, which cause disease relapse, are widely considered to be the last barrier towards malaria eradication. The biology of this quiescent form of the parasite is poorly understood which hinders drug discovery. We report a comparative transcriptomic dataset of replicating liver schizonts and dormant hypnozoites of the relapsing parasite Plasmodium cynomolgi. Hypnozoites express only 34% of Plasmodium physiological pathways, while 91% are expressed in replicating schizonts. Few known malaria drug targets are expressed in quiescent parasites, but pathways involved in microbial dormancy, maintenance of genome integrity and ATP homeostasis were robustly expressed. Several transcripts encoding heavy metal transporters were expressed in hypnozoites an

SUBMITTER: Voorberg-van der Wel A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5758109 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature