Most individuals living in areas of the world where malaria transmission is constant acquire clinical immunity by adulthood, however women becoming pregnant for the first time have shown increased susceptibility to Plasmodium falciparum parasites that specifically target the placenta. What is now known as ‘pregnancy malaria’ can cause severe problems for both mother and child such as maternal anemia, low birth weight and increased neonatal and infant mortality rates, which are now averaging between 100,000 and 200,000 African newborns each year. Previous studies show that women build up antibodies to placental malaria through successive pregnancies, therefore raising hopes of developing a vaccine. Through whole-genome-expression analysis of parasites collected from Tanzanian women with pregnancy malaria researchers identified six genes significantly higher in both placental and peripheral parasites. A member of a variant group of genes previously linked to pregnancy malaria, as well as five genes of unknown functions, were identified. read more

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