Malaria var gene expression: keeping up with the neighbors

Kami Kim1

  • 1Department of Medicine (Division of Infectious Diseases), Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461, USA. kami.kim@einstein.yu.edu

Cell Host & Microbe
|January 24, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Malaria parasites control virulence protein expression through epigenetic regulation. Recent studies reveal molecular mechanisms determining if specific parasite genes are activated or silenced, crucial for malaria pathogenesis.

Related Concept Videos

Position-effect Variegation02:32

Position-effect Variegation

In 1928, a German botanist Emil Heitz observed the moss nuclei with a DNA binding dye. He observed that while some chromatin regions decondense and spread out in the interphase nucleus, others do not. He termed them euchromatin and heterochromatin, respectively. He proposed that the heterochromatin regions reflect a functionally inactive state of the genome. It was later confirmed that heterochromatin is transcriptionally repressed, and euchromatin is transcriptionally active chromatin.
Gene Flow02:39

Gene Flow

Gene flow is the transfer of genes among populations, resulting from either the dispersal of gametes or from the migration of individuals.
Symbiosis00:58

Symbiosis

Symbiotic relationships are long-term, close interactions between individuals of different species that affect the distribution and abundance of those species. When a relationship is beneficial to both species, this is called mutualism. When the relationship is beneficial to one species but neither beneficial nor harmful to the other species, this is called commensalism. When one organism is harmed to benefit another, the relationship is known as parasitism. These types of relationships often...
Cell Specific Gene Expression01:58

Cell Specific Gene Expression

Multicellular organisms contain a variety of structurally and functionally distinct cell types, but the DNA in all the cells originated from the same parent cells. The differences in the cells can be attributed to the differential gene expression. Liver cells, whose functions include detoxification of blood, production of bile to metabolize fats, and synthesis of proteins essential for metabolism, must express a specific set of genes to perform their functions. Gene expression also varies with...