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Author Spotlight: Identifying Compensatory Pathways in Malaria Parasites Containing Hypomorphic Allele of Essential Protein Kinases
Published on: November 22, 2024
Host-pathogen interactions in malaria: cross-kingdom signaling and mitochondrial regulation
Shirley Luckhart1, Nazzy Pakpour1, Cecilia Giulivi2
1Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis CA 95616, United States.
Abstract:
Malaria parasite-host interactions are complex and have confounded available drugs and the development of vaccines. Further, we now appreciate that interventions for malaria elimination and eradication must include therapeutics with intrinsic transmission blocking activity to treat the patient and prevent disease spread. Studies over the past 15 years have revealed significant conservation in the response to infection in mosquito and human hosts. More recently, we have recognized that conserved cell signaling cascades in mosquitoes and humans dictate infection outcome through the regulation of mitochondrial function and biogenesis, which feed back to host immunity, basic intermediary metabolism, and stress responses. These responses - reflected clearly in the primeval insect host - provide fertile ground for innovative strategies for both treatment and transmission blocking.
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