Researchers Disable Protein Vital for Malaria Parasite Development

A unique member of the signalling proteins, essential for the development of the malaria parasite has been disabled by scientists. They have produced a mutant lacking the ancient bacterial Shewanella-like protein phosphatase known as SHLP1 (pronounced 'shelph').

This mutant is unable to complete its complex life cycle and is arrested in its development in the mosquito.

Malaria - Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Prevention, Treatment
Malaria is caused by a parasite that enters blood through the bite of an infected mosquito. It is characterized by fever, vomiting, shivering, sweating and other symptoms.

The finding could help in the design of new drugs to arrest the spread of this killer disease.

SHLP1 is critical to the cellular development of the malaria parasite. It can be found at every stage in the lifecycle of the malaria parasite and for the first time experts led by The University of Nottingham have analysed their biological function.

Dr Rita Tewari and her team in the Centre for Genetics and Genomics in the School of Biology have spent three years studying the phosphatase proteins that are important building blocks in the life cycle of the malaria parasite.

Quiz on Malaria
Malaria is a common parasitic disease of the tropics, resulting in a million deaths every year. It is most commonly found in tropical countries. The symptoms of malaria include fever with chills, headache, muscle aches, tiredness, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Malaria fatalities can be reduced if they are detected early and treated appropriately

"SHLP1 is absent in humans and can be explored as an excellent target for malaria transmission control. Prevention of malaria transmission to and from the mosquito is vital in order to stop the devastating spread of malaria. Targeting SHLP1 could be an important step to achieve this goal," r Tewari said.

Dr Tewari's latest research has focused on the ancient bacterial Shewanella-like protein phosphatase (SHLP1) which is found only in bacteria, fungi, protists (organisms which paved the way for the evolution of early plants, animals and fungi) and plants.

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Spend money indefinitely to control malaria transmission or commit additional resources to eliminate transmission completely, this is the economic dilemma faced by nations battling malaria.

The researchers, funded by the MRC and the Wellcome Trust, have discovered how SHLP1 controls development of the parasite at an essential stage of its life cycle. The parasite must move between human and mosquito in its quest to spread the disease.

It does this every time the mosquito bites. Removing this enzyme causes defects in structures vital for invading the mosquito gut - effectively stopping the mosquito from passing the disease on to another victim.

Malaria Can Be Defeated Without a Globally Led Eradication Program: Research
According to a recent research published in journal Science malaria does not have to be eradicated globally for individual countries to succeed at maintaining elimination of the disease.

The research brought together expertise from Imperial College London, University of Oxford, the MRC National Institute for Medical Research and the University of Edinburgh.

The findings of study have been published in the journal Cell Reports.

Source-ANI