Microbiota, a Third Player in the Host-Plasmodium Affair

Plasmodium, the causative agent of malaria, is responsible for more than 200 million new infections and 400 000 deaths yearly. While in recent years the influence of the microbiota in homeostasis and a wide variety of disorders has taken center stage, its contribution during malaria infections has only now started to emerge. The few published studies suggest two distinct but complementary directions. Plasmodium infections can cause significant alterations in host (at least gut) microbiota, and host gut microbiota can influence the clinical outcome of malaria infections. In this opinion article, we highlight the most fundamental unanswered questions in the field that will, hopefully, point future research directions towards unveiling key mechanistic insights of the Plasmodium-host-microbiota axis.