Genetic code cracked for a devastating blood parasite

Melbourne scientists led an international research team which has cracked the genetic code and predicted some high priority drug targets for the blood parasite Schistosoma haematobium, which is linked to bladder cancer and HIV/AIDS and causes the insidious urogenital disease schistosomiasis haematobia in more than 112 million people in Africa. The team sequenced the genome of Schistosoma haematobium from a single pair of tiny worms using an advanced approach.

Dr Neil Young, Prof Robin Gasser, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Melbourne

Nature Genetics; http://newsroom.melbourne.edu/news/n-737