Biology Professor Jane Carlton will deliver “Malaria, Mosquitoes, and Man: How a Parasite is Winning the Disease War,” on Fri., March 29, 4-5:30 p.m. at NYU’s Center for Genomics and Systems Biology (CGSB) Auditorium.
Carlton, professor of biology and director of Genomic Sequencing at NYU, will describe the sophisticated biology of the malaria parasite. Working both in India and New York, Carlton is developing new genomic approaches to study the evolution of the malaria parasite, one of humankind’s deadliest foes. At the university’s Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, Carlton and her colleagues, with the help of some powerful new technologies, are examining the genomes of dozens of malaria isolates at a time—a process that offers genetic snapshots of the parasite.
“This gives us the ability to see natural variation and its contribution to different characteristics of the parasite,” explains Carlton, who is also an adjunct professor at NYU School of Medicine and research associate at the American Museum of Natural History. “Eventually, by mapping its genetic evolution, we aim to see which components of the malaria parasite may be better drug targets or can be targeted by a vaccine.”
The lecture is part of NYU’s “Science on the Square,” a series of lectures focusing on scientific topics of interest to the general public and sponsored by NYU’s Dean for Science.
The lecture is free and open to the public. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, call 212.998.3800. Reporters interested in attending must RSVP to James Devitt, NYU’s Office of Public Affairs, at 212.998.6808 or james.devitt@nyu.edu. Subways: N/R [8th St.], 6 [Astor Pl.])