''Plasmodium gaboni'' is a parasite of the genus ''
Plasmodium
''Plasmodium'' is a genus of unicellular eukaryotes that are obligate parasites of vertebrates and insects. The life cycles of ''Plasmodium'' species involve development in a blood-feeding insect host which then injects parasites into a ver ...
'' subgenus ''
Laverania
''Laverania'' is a subgenus of the parasite genus ''Plasmodium''. Infection with these species results in malaria. The subgenus was first described in 1958.
The name was first proposed by Welch in 1897 as a genus name for the group now known as ...
''.
''P. gaboni'' was given its name in reference to Gabon, where the parasite was discovered in two wild-borne chimpanzees kept as pets in villages in that country.
''Plasmodium gaboni'' is
phylogenetically very close to ''
Plasmodium billbrayi''.
Taxonomy
In 2009, Ollomo et al. published the complete mitochondrial genome of ''Plasmodium gaboni'', which was not yet named at the time. The parasite belongs to the ''
P falciparum/
P reichenowi'' lineage.
It has been proposed that ''Plasmodium gaboni'' diverged from the ''P falciparum/P reichenowi'' lineage about 21 million years ago, leading to the conclusion that the ancestor of this parasite
clade could have been already present in
hominid ancestors.
''Plasmodium gaboni'' is 10-fold more diverse than human parasite ''
Plasmodium falciparum'', indicating a very recent origin of the latter.
''Plasmodium gaboni'' is similar to both ''Plasmodium falciparum'' and to ''
Plasmodium reichenowi
''Plasmodium'' is a genus of unicellular eukaryotes that are obligate parasites of vertebrates and insects. The life cycles of ''Plasmodium'' species involve development in a blood-feeding insect host which then injects parasites into a ver ...
'' in microscopic studies, seeming likely that all of these ape
Laverania
''Laverania'' is a subgenus of the parasite genus ''Plasmodium''. Infection with these species results in malaria. The subgenus was first described in 1958.
The name was first proposed by Welch in 1897 as a genus name for the group now known as ...
parasites represent morphologically indistinguishable species.
Distribution
''Plasmodium gaboni'' can be found in western Africa.
Hosts
Study has confirmed the presence of ''Plasmodium gaboni'' in wild chimpanzees (subspecies ''
Pan troglodytes troglodytes'' and ''
Pan troglodytes vellerosus'').
Due to the close proximity between ''Plasmodium gaboni'' and the most virulent agent of
malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...
, ''Plasmodium falciparum'', it has been considered the possibility of transfer risk of this species to humans.
See also
*
List of Plasmodium species infecting primates
References
gaboni
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