The Plasmodium bottleneck: malaria
parasite losses in the mosquito vector |
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Authors: | Ryan C Smith Joel Vega-Rodríguez Marcelo Jacobs-Lorena |
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Institution: | Department of Molecular Microbiology, Malaria Research Institute, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Immunology, Baltimore, MD, USA |
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Abstract: | Nearly one million people are killed every year by the malaria parasite
Plasmodium. Although the disease-causing forms of the parasite
exist only in the human blood, mosquitoes of the genus Anopheles are
the obligate vector for transmission. Here, we review the parasite
life cycle in the vector and highlight the human and mosquito contributions that
limit malaria parasite development in the mosquito host. We address parasite killing
in its mosquito host and bottlenecks in parasite numbers that might guide
intervention strategies to prevent transmission. |
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Keywords: | malaria mosquito Plasmodium innate immunity |
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