Of malaria, metabolism and membrane transport

With the sequencing of the Plasmodium falciparum genome now complete, increasing attention is turning to the function of gene products and to cell-regulatory processes. The combination of in silico analyses with modern molecular and biophysical methods is leading to rapid advances in our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the biochemistry and physiology of the parasite and its host cell. In this brief review, we present a 'snap shot' of recent work in this area, with particular emphasis on aspects relevant to the development of new antimalarial drugs.