A method to combat malaria by knocking out a gene that helps malaria parasites reproduce inside mosquitoes has been found, Danish and U.S. researchers said Tuesday.
The gene — whose function was previously unknown — allows the parasite to develop an egg-like structure called an oocyst, which spawns new infectious parasites, the researchers reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"When you take away the gene you see the effect of missing that gene on the parasite," said Dan Klaerke, a physiologist at the University of Copenhagen who worked on the study.
His team looked at a malaria parasite that infects mice and is similar to the species that target humans.
Malaria infects between 300 million and 500 million people each year, mainly in Africa. The disease kills about 1 million people each year, including a child every 30 seconds.
Malaria is difficult to fight because its complex life cycle allows the parasite to evade drugs and vaccines. The tiny parasites live and reproduce inside mosquitoes, which spread them when they bite animals or people.
Last week, British researchers showed how malaria parasites can fine-tune the number of male and female offspring they produce to maximize the odds of infecting another host.
Stopping the parasites from reproducing is important because an infected mosquito is unable to transmit malaria if it cannot reproduce, Klaerke said.
Source: Xinhua/Agencies
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