New York: A common but dangerous strain of malaria that hides in the liver, re-emerging years later to trigger new infections and is harder to prevent, diagnose and treat, can soon be treated.

According to Niraj Tolia, assistant professor of molecular microbiology and biochemistry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, they have found how a form of malaria - common in India, Southeast Asia and South America - attacks red blood cells by clamping down on the cells with a pair of proteins.

"More people live at risk of infection by this strain of malaria - called plasmodium vivax - than any other. We are now using what we have learned to create vaccines tailored to stop the infectious process by preventing the parasite from attaching to red blood cells," Tolia added.

The study, appeared in the journal PLOS Pathogens, provides details that would help scientists design better vaccines and drug treatments for this strain.

Earlier studies had suggested that one P. vivax protein binds to one protein on the surface of red blood cells.

Tolia's research reveals that the binding is a two-step process that involves two copies of a parasite protein coming together like tongs around two copies of a host protein.
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