New technique could help control and treat malaria

A new study has revealed that single-cell genomics could provide new insight into the biology of malaria parasites, which can improve treatment and control of the disease.

According to the study by the researchers at the Texas Biomedical Research Institute, malaria infections commonly contain complex mixtures of Plasmodium parasites which cause the disease and these mixtures, known as multiple genotype infections (MGI's), can alter the impact of the infection due to parasites competing with one another and can drive the spread of drug resistance.

Shalini Nair said that up to 70 per cent of infections in sub-Saharan Africa are MGI's and they currently don't know how many genotypes are present and whether parasites come from a single mosquito bite or multiple mosquito bites.

The study was published in the journal Genome Research.