Achievement

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame have developed a “gene chip” to contribute to the identification of malaria drug resistance, an effort that will allow for real-time response in modified treatment strategies for this devastating disease. The discovery is described in a paper appearing in the April 2012 early online edition of the journal Science. The novel method is especially valuable in Southeast Asia known to be a hot spot for antimalarial drug resistance because it allows researchers to see resistance as it is emerging and thereby adapt strategies to tailor and protect drugs used in the treatment of malaria. The team of researchers includes GLOBES Faculty Advisor Michael Ferdig, GLOBES IGERT Trainee Becky Miller; and John Tan, managing director of the ND Genomics Core Facility, in collaboration with the Texas Biomedical Research Institute and Shoklo Malaria Research Unit in Thailand. Miller helped develop and optimize the array used in the study.