Press articles

haemosporidian parasites of antelopes and Other Vertebrates from gabon central africa

extreme inbreeding in Leishmania braziliensis

ebola and Marburg haemorrhagic fever

book chapters bats and viruses
Sequencing Analysis Traces Origins of Malaria-Causing Parasite to Southeast Asia
Genomeweb, April 2021

By analysing more than 400 P. vivax samples from all over the world and more than a dozen African great apes P. vivax-like, researchers led by Virginie Rougeron from the MiVEGEC laboratory characterized the genetic variation among this human parasite species et decipher its Southeast Asian origin. 

Plasmodium vivax-like genome talks
IRD Le Mag', September 2018

The work of specialists in primates, mosquitoes and malaria parasites has provided a better understanding of the emergence of one of the forms of the disease affecting human populations throughout the tropical world. It opens up new avenues for combating this scourge.

'Malaria: common vectors for humans and great apes'
IRD actualités, April 2016

Researchers from the IRD, the CNRS and the Centre international de recherches médicales de Franceville (CIRMF – Gabon) have conducted a vast entomological study in the heart of the Gabonese forests. Their objective: to identify the species of mosquitoes involved in the transmission of malaria in the great apes of Central Africa. The scientists identified three mosquito vectors that bite both gorillas and chimpanzees, but also humans. This work, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on 11 April 2016, confirms that transfers of the disease from one species to another are possible.

Persistent malaria prevalence sustains sickle cell disease in Gabon
IRD actualités, June 2015

An international study conducted in Gabon by researchers from IRD, CNRS, CIRMF and the University of California shows that the geographical distribution of sickle cell disease and malaria are linked in this country. These results, which pave the way for coupled prevention and surveillance actions for these associated diseases, are published in the Proceedings of the American Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on 11 May 2015.

Leishmania parasites reveal their sexuality
IRD actualités, June 2015

With 16 million people affected worldwide, mainly in developing countries, leishmaniasis is a major public health problem. Yet they remain neglected diseases, both in terms of treatment and research efforts. In particular, the parasites responsible, called Leishmania, are still poorly understood from a biological point of view. How do they reproduce? How do they evolve and adapt[1] to their environment, to their hosts, to drugs…? A recent study by the IRD lifts the veil on their complex biology.

Origin of Plasmodium vivax malaria in humans: study of great ape parasites sheds new light
IRD actualités, May 2013

An international team of researchers from IRD, CNRS, the University and CHU of Toulouse, CIRMF, IRET and the University of California has just shed new light on the origin of Plasmodium vivax malaria in humans, the second most common malaria agent in the world. They have shown that the parasites of gorillas and chimpanzees form a distinct genetic group, much more diverse than that formed by human parasites. This surprising finding suggests an older origin of parasites in apes. Furthermore, the researchers show that transfers from apes to humans (or from humans to apes) are possible. These results were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on 1 May 2013.

Cats and leihsmnaiases
IRD actualités, January 2012

A cat from the village of Cacao is a star despite himself. This semi-tame cat represents the first case of cutaneous leishmaniasis due to Leishmania braziliensis in French Guyana. “This unexpected discovery in a family living on the edge of a secondary forest was made by Dr François Catzeflis during a field mission to collect mammal specimens as part of an ANR project,” explains Anne-Laure Bañuls, a researcher at the IRD. The scientists were alerted by characteristic lesions on the nose and ears of the domestic feline.