Last Updated: 11/02/2025
Decode aspects of Plasmodium cell and molecular biology as a tool to develop new antimalarials
Objectives
*Original title in Portuguese: Decodificar aspectos da biologia celular e molecular do Plasmodium como uma ferramenta para desenvolver novos antimaláricos
The general objective of this project is to understand how the parasite detects the signaling in its environment, which are the molecular components involved in the transduction of this signaling.
Malaria is one of the main infectious diseases that afflicts humanity. Studies over the last decade indicate that pathogens have developed sophisticated cell signaling networks that allow both cell-cell communication and mechanisms to detect the extracellular environment. In this sense, it is believed that parasites have developed systems to resist major changes in the different microenvironments to which they are exposed throughout their life cycle. Thus, in addition to a complex biology, with sexual and asexual stages of development, the malaria parasite is exposed to distinct microenvironments within the vector cycle, as well as during its development within a vertebrate. It was recently reported that purinergic signaling could be involved in the perception of TNF by P. falciparum. The intention is to dissect the involvement of purine signaling in the P. falciparum cycle, thus revealing the role of a P2X7 receptor in TNF signaling. PfGCaMP3 transgenic parasites will be used, as well as other molecular and cellular tools to understand the signaling pathways in the malaria parasite in order to disrupt this signaling.
Apr 2019 — Nov 2025
Related Resources
