Sickle cells infected with malaria stained with green flourescent proteinSCIENCE/AAAS
Two hemoglobin mutations, including one that causes sickle cell anemia, may protect people from severe malaria by gumming up the cellular machinery the parasite uses to transmit deadly proteins to the cell surface. The findings, published today (November 10) in Science Express, suggest potential ways to fight the deadly disease.
“It’s a great study,” said Rick Fairhurst, who studies malaria pathogenesis and immunity at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and was not involved in the study. “It really takes us a huge, giant leap forward.” By showing what mutations enable cells to avoid the deadliest consequences of malaria, the research may also point to potential treatment targets, he added.
For decades, researchers have known that people who carry a gene for sickle ...
