ABOVE: An artist’s rendering of red blood cells infected with Plasmodium.
© ISTOCK.COM, DR_MICROBE
During a malaria infection, countless Plasmodium parasites simultaneously destroy the red blood cells they’ve inhabited. This destruction causes a wave of fever and chills in the infected person that happens predictably every 24, 48, or 72 hours, depending upon which strain of the parasite is causing the infection.
For years, scientists have hypothesized that the host’s biological rhythms were responsible for the coordination and timing of the actions of Plasmodium. But in two studies published in Science today (May 14), researchers reveal that the parasites have their own inherent clock that both responds to the host and is capable of oscillating on its own.
“There’s been a longstanding question in the field as to why it is that malaria parasites are synchronous inside mammalian hosts. Is it because of the host or is it because of the ...
