title: Plasmodium biology: genomic gleanings.
abstract: The highly A+T rich genomes of human and rodent malarial parasites offer unprecedented glimpses of a lineage that is distinct from other model organisms. Plasmodium is distinguished by the presence of numerous low complexity inserts within globular domains of proteins. It displays several peculiarities in its transcription apparatus, and its DNA repair system appears to favor a certain innate level of mutability. Plasmodium possesses many cell surface molecules with "animal-like" adhesion modules. Potential genetic footprints of the ancestral eukaryotic algal precursor of the apicoplast are also detectable in its genome.
authors.affiliation: National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20894, USA. aravind@ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Aravind
authors.forename: Lakshminarayan M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Iyer
authors.forename: Thomas E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Wellems
authors.forename: Louis H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D018503:Genome, Protozoan; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008018:Life Cycle Stages / Q000235:genetics; D010802:Phylogeny; D010961:Plasmodium / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary / Q000235:genetics; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015800:Protozoan Proteins