{"title":"What is a parasitism gene?","authors":"Peter Sarkies, Mark Viney","doi":"10.1016/j.pt.2026.09.002","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Parasites evolved from free-living ancestors and in so doing their genomes changed, including through the evolution of new genes, commonly called parasitism genes. Accurately identifying these parasitism genes will help us to better understand parasites and their parasitism. There are a number of commonly used approaches to doing this, but they all have important caveats, which we consider. While not having a wholly new solution to the problem of identifying parasitism genes, we suggest that wider genomic features of parasitism genes and their expression might be relevant. We emphasise the importance of being cautious and circumspect when identifying a gene as a parasitism gene, and doing this will bring greater clarity to understanding the most fascinating of lifestyles.</p>","PeriodicalId":23327,"journal":{"name":"Trends in parasitology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.6000,"publicationDate":"2026-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Trends in parasitology","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pt.2026.09.002","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PARASITOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Parasites evolved from free-living ancestors and in so doing their genomes changed, including through the evolution of new genes, commonly called parasitism genes. Accurately identifying these parasitism genes will help us to better understand parasites and their parasitism. There are a number of commonly used approaches to doing this, but they all have important caveats, which we consider. While not having a wholly new solution to the problem of identifying parasitism genes, we suggest that wider genomic features of parasitism genes and their expression might be relevant. We emphasise the importance of being cautious and circumspect when identifying a gene as a parasitism gene, and doing this will bring greater clarity to understanding the most fascinating of lifestyles.
期刊介绍：
Since its inception as Parasitology Today in 1985, Trends in Parasitology has evolved into a highly esteemed review journal of global significance, reflecting the importance of medical and veterinary parasites worldwide. The journal serves as a hub for communication among researchers across all disciplines of parasitology, encompassing endoparasites, ectoparasites, transmission vectors, and susceptible hosts.
Each monthly issue of Trends in Parasitology offers authoritative, cutting-edge, and yet accessible review articles, providing a balanced and comprehensive overview, along with opinion pieces offering personal and novel perspectives. Additionally, the journal publishes a variety of short articles designed to inform and stimulate thoughts in a lively and widely-accessible manner. These include Science & Society (discussing the interface between parasitology and the general public), Spotlight (highlighting recently published research articles), Forum (presenting single-point hypotheses), Parasite/Vector of the Month (featuring a modular display of the selected species), Letter (providing responses to recent articles in Trends in Parasitology), and Trendstalk (conducting interviews). Please note that the journal exclusively publishes literature reviews based on published data, with systematic reviews, meta-analysis, and unpublished primary research falling outside our scope.
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