Sílvia Portugal

The paper develops a rapid, cost-effective nanopore sequencing protocol and bioinformatics dashboard for continental-scale genomic surveillance of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.

The paper analyzes genetic diversity of the malaria parasite antigen MSP2 in Sub-Saharan Africa using PCR and long-read sequencing, revealing extensive sequence variation and regional prevalence patterns.

The paper identifies unconjugated bilirubin as a protective metabolite against malaria by inhibiting parasite proliferation and hemozoin formation.

The paper compares var gene expression in asymptomatic Plasmodium falciparum infections and clinical malaria cases during dry and wet seasons in Mali, finding fewer and lower-level var transcripts in asymptomatic carriers.

This study uses single-cell RNA-seq to profile seasonal changes in Plasmodium falciparum parasites, showing older parasites circulate in the dry season and transcriptional changes in exported proteins affecting cytoadhesion.

This study identifies six iron transport proteins in Plasmodium falciparum using RNA-sequencing and functional assays, revealing a new model of iron homeostasis in the parasite.