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Submitted January 4, 2024
Published 2024-01-08

Artículos

Vol. 34 No. 1 (2024): Scientia

BIOMECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF ERYTHROCYTES INFECTED BY Plasmodium AND THEIR STUDY WITH OPTICAL TWEEZERS


DOI https://doi.org/10.48204/j.scientia.v34n1.a4578

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References
DOI: 10.48204/j.scientia.v34n1.a4578

Published: 2024-01-08

How to Cite

Alaín B. , E. D. (2024). BIOMECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF ERYTHROCYTES INFECTED BY Plasmodium AND THEIR STUDY WITH OPTICAL TWEEZERS. Scientia, 34(1), 66–79. https://doi.org/10.48204/j.scientia.v34n1.a4578

Abstract

Malaria is a disease transmitted by the Plasmodium parasite when a female of the genus Anopheles inoculates the parasite into the vertebrate host. P. falciparum is the species that causes the most severe form of the disease. This parasite alters the deformability of erythrocytes by invading them, making them more spherical and rigid. This condition is responsible for the symptoms of the disease. The drugs used to treat malaria also alter the deformability of erythrocytes, which causes different conditions after treatment. Optical tweezers are innovative tools that consist of a beam of light coupled to a microscope to manipulate and stretch microscopic particles, which allows knowing the biomechanical properties of cells. This technique can be used as a diagnostic method of the disease or to measure the effectiveness of antimalarial treatments.

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