BACKGROUND: @entity311 parasites that infect birds can have narrow or broad host-tropisms. These differences in host specificity @entity15481 a useful model for studying the evolution and transmission of parasite assemblages across geographic ranges. The molecular mechanisms involved in host-specificity and the biology of avian @entity311 parasites in general are important aspects of @entity311 pathogenesis that warrant further examination. Here, the transcriptome of the @entity311 parasite @entity46772 was characterized to investigate the biology and the conservation of genes across various @entity311 parasite species. METHODS: The @entity46772 transcriptome was annotated and KEGG pathway mapping was performed. The ripr gene and orthologous genes that play critical roles in the purine salvage pathway were identified and characterized using bioinformatics and phylogenetic methods. RESULTS: Analysis of the transcriptome sequence database identified essential genes of the @entity17262 salvage pathway in @entity46772 that shared high sequence similarity to @entity3964 when compared to other @entity1 @entity3964 spp. However, based on the current sequence data, there was a lack of orthologous genes that belonged to the erythrocyte-binding-like (EBL) and reticulocyte-binding-like homologue (RH) family in @entity46772 . In addition, an orthologue of the Rh5 interacting protein (ripr) was identified. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that the pathways involved in parasite red blood cell invasion are significantly different in avian @entity3964 parasites, but critical metabolic pathways are conserved throughout divergent @entity3964 taxa.

De novo assembly and transcriptome analysis of XXXX identifies the Rh5 interacting protein (ripr), and reveals a lack of EBL and RH gene family diversification.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['mammalian'] @entity17262 :: ('D011687', 'Chemical') :: ['purine'] @entity46772 :: ('5849', 'Species') :: ['Plasmodium gallinaceum', 'P. gallinaceum'] @entity15481 :: ('MESH:D008289', 'Disease') :: ['make avian malaria'] @entity3964 :: ('5833', 'Species') :: ['Plasmodium falciparum', 'Plasmodium'] @entity311 :: ('MESH:D008288', 'Disease') :: ['Malaria', 'malaria']
@entity46772 :: (5849,Species) :: ['Plasmodium gallinaceum']
