An improved technique for the cultivation of Plasmodium falciparum in vitro without daily medium change

A simple method is described allowing growth of Plasmodium falciparum in suspension cultures with 1% outdated human erythrocytes without the need for medium change for three to four days. Depending on the initial parasitaemia, final parasitaemias of from 10% to 30% can be obtained. Growth is exponential and asynchronous with a mean multiplication rate of 7.7 +/- 1.0 (n = 5) -fold per 48-hour cycle. The method is suitable for cultivation of a wide range of laboratory strains of P. falciparum, as well as for primary isolations of clinical material.