[Printer Friendly Version]   [How to E-mail This Article to A Friend]

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2: Shared Gene Map

Five related studies, all published in Science on Friday, July 15, 2005, revealed a marked sameness in the basic genetic map of the parasites that cause three very different diseases. Examination of each parasite’s DNA showed that the organisms causing sleeping sickness, Chagas and leishmanlasis all have nearly identical genes at their core.

Although each parasite is a one-celled organism, the way that each infects the body is quite different. Chagas disease is spread by “assassin bugs,” the carriers of the disease-causing parasite. Chagas’ victims can suffer heart or brain damage. Sleeping sickness, which interferes with the sleep cycle, is spread by the tsetse fly. Leishmanlasis, which can cause ugly skin sores, is carried by sand flies.

The people who must worry about “assassin bugs,” tsetse flies and sand flies live in South America, in Africa and in the Middle East, Brazil and Peru. Diseases in such developing nations usually spread quickly because there aren’t any drugs that easily kill the infecting parasite. Now that scientists have found that the parasites causing these three diseases have similar genes, the development of better drugs seems closer to reality.

At the present time the only sure way to prevent these three diseases is to do away with scores of “assassin bugs,” tsetse flies and sand flies. So for those flying insects, this newest discovery is good news. It’s also good news for the many people living in the areas where those insects like to fly around.

--Written by Sue Chehrenegar

Write your own story telling us what you think about this article!

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 3: Science Lab Moves On Skis