Identification of differentially regulated genes of Plasmodium by suppression subtractive hybridization

Plasmodium, the causative agent of malaria, has many morphologically and fu nctionally distinct developmental stages. In the mosquito host alone, there are five transitions during the development of a gametocyte into a sporozo ite. Determining which genes are expressed at the different developmental s tages is vital to our understanding of the parasite. There are a growing nu mber of techniques designed to study gene expression, including microarray. Here, Johannes Dessens, Gabrielle Margos, Maria nef Carmen Rodriguez and R obert Sinden describe a novel method: suppression subtrative hybridization (SSH) and its successful application in obtaining mosquito midgut stage-spe cific genes of Plasmodium.