Objective
Malaria kills a child every 40 seconds. Up to 500 million malaria cases are estimated each year, resulting in more than a million deaths. The malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum is one of the greatest health problems in the developing world. This project will test the hypothesis that the blood stage of the malaria parasite (merozoite) depends on multiple expressed ligands (rather than only one) for both adhering to and invading erythrocytes. Novel variable polypeptides termed SURFINs, which are encoded b y the surf-gene family, were recently discovered on both the infected erythrocyte (IE) and merozoite surface. In addition, other new gene families have been identified in the sub-telomeric regions of the P. falciparum chromosomes.
The identification of the se polypeptides suggests that antigenic variation also occurs at the merozoite level and that the parasite coordinates antigen expression. Furthermore, it argues that multiple molecules have important roles in both IE adhesion and merozoite invasion into t he erythrocyte. Studies will focus on identifying new ligands using a proteomic approach termed 'surfeomics', which targets protein moieties displayed on the surface of live IEs. Parasite surface proteins are removed using a trypsin digest and identified by mass spectrometry. Results will be used to create a database containing parasite surface proteins linked to genomic data.
This database will augment the existing PlasmaDB database and provide information on surface protein variation and its relationship to parasite strain, life stage, and virulence. This research will increase our understanding of malaria pathogenesis by combining in silico bioinformatics and in vitro molecular experiments. Expressed surface proteins are important in the ability of theme rozoite to evade the human immune system, and are a target for malaria vaccine development. These research findings could be an important step in alleviating malaria-induced suffering in the developing world.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- medical and health sciences health sciences infectious diseases parasitic diseases malaria
- natural sciences computer and information sciences databases
- medical and health sciences basic medicine immunology
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy pharmaceutical drugs vaccines
- natural sciences chemical sciences analytical chemistry mass spectrometry
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
FP6-2004-MOBILITY-7
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
IIF - Marie Curie actions-Incoming International Fellowships
Coordinator
STOCKHOLM
Sweden
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.