Coadaptation of blood-dwelling apicomplexan parasites and their vertebrate and invertebrate hosts

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My research focuses on the interactions between blood parasites and their vertebrate and invertebrate hosts to investigate the processes that result in the complex life cycles, host specificity and virulence of these parasites.  One of the most important groups of one-celled animals, or protozoa, is the phylum Apicomplexa.  Parasites in this phylum cause many devastating diseases, including malaria and toxoplasmosis of humans, and coccidiosis and neosporosis of domesticated animals.  Additionally, nearly every species of wildlife is parasitised with a number of apicomplexan parasites in their blood, tissues or intestinal tracts.  The aim of my proposal is to identify the functional, immunological, ecological and phylogenetic features associated with the interaction between blood-dwelling apicomplexan parasites and vertebrate and invertebrate host cells.  I propose a diverse research approach using two well-defined model systems that will discern mechanisms forming the basis of interactions between apicomplexan parasites and hosts. The first system involves two blood parasites of the genus