Thiruvananthapuram, June 18 -- Scientists at the Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council-Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (BRIC-RGCB) have uncovered a previously unknown mechanism by which malaria parasites survive treatment with artemisinin, the world's most widely used anti-malarial drug.
The findings, published as an Editor's Choice article in The Journal of Infectious Diseases by Christeen Davis and colleagues, reveal that immature red blood cells, known as reticulocytes, provide a protective biochemical environment that enables malaria parasites to withstand the oxidative stress caused by artemisinin.
The study challenges the long-held belief that resistance to artemisinin is driven mainly by genetic mutations in the paras...