Liver parasite lacks key genes for fatty acid synthesis: Genome sequencing of Clonorchis sinensis
Monday, October 24, 2011 - 03:30
in Biology & Nature
The human liver fluke Clonorchis sinensis affects more than 35 million people in South East Asia and 15 million in China. Infection by this parasite causes clonorchiasis. Repeated or chronic infection can lead to serious disease of the liver, gall bladder or bile ducts, including the frequently fatal bile duct cancer - cholangiocarcinoma (CCA). The complete genome sequence the genome of C. sinensis, published in BioMed Central's open access journal Genome Biology, has provided insight into the biochemical pathways available to the fluke and shows that they are lacking enzymes required for fatty acid biosynthesis.