A LAVISH lifestyle might be the downfall of three parasites that affect millions of people in poor countries. The sequencing of the DNA of the parasites that cause sleeping sickness, Chagas’ disease and leishmaniasis has revealed that they have a unique and wasteful way of making proteins.
The single-celled trypanosome parasites, collectively known as the “tritryps”, evolved from a common ancestor at least 200 millions year ago, and still share many characteristics. They are probably so careless about how they make proteins because they enjoy an endless free lunch, plundering nutrients from their hosts. “Metabolically, they don’t care,” says Peter…
