Study of saglin gene protein in Anopheles darlingi and other Anopheles spp and their possible relation with Plasmodium falciparum infectivity

• Grant number: 12/16103-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: January 15, 2013
• End date: September 14, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Parasitology - Protozoology of Parasites
• Principal Investigator: Paulo Eduardo Martins Ribolla
• Grantee: Giovana Caramaschi Degelo
• Supervisor: Marcelo Jacobs-Lorena
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IBB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Johns Hopkins University (JHU), United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 11/09400-6 - Study of saglin protein gene in Anopheles darlingi and other Anopheles spp. and its relation to the infectivity with Plasmodium falciparum, BP.DR

Abstract

Malaria is a major public health problem, in Brazil. 306,000 cases of malaria were registered in 2009.Among Anopheles mosquito species, that transmits the infective form of parasite (sporozoites), the main species found in Brazil is the Anopheles darlingi is found in 80% of Brazil and the Amazon region is related to 99.8% of cases. For malaria transmission occurs, it is necessary that the sporozoite recognize and invade the salivary glands of Anopheles mosquitoes through a specific interaction. The saglin is a protein of the salivary gland of Anopheles that interacts with the domain-A protein TRAP, the sporozoite surface protein,and this interaction is essential for the invasion of the salivary gland and the transmission of malaria. The aim of this study is to evaluate the infectivity of different anophelines species,compare with Anopheles aquasalis variability and the possible relationship of the gene of this protein with the infectivity. (AU)