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The use of percoll gradients, elutriator rotor elution, and mithramycin staining for the isolation and identification of intraerythrocytic stages ofPlasmodium berghei

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Abstract

Intraerythrocytic parasites ofPlasmodium vinckei andPlasmodium berghei were separated according to their developmental stages using discontinuous Percoll gradients. Contaminating nucleated blood cells such as leukocytes were removed by elutriation centrifugation. The stages were unequivocally identified in smears using a newly developed DNA-specific staining procedure with mithrmycin and fluorescence microscopy. This stain can also be used to detect parasites in human blood of very low parasitemias. The combination of methods described has many possible applications in immunologic and biochemical parasite research.

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Rüssmann, L., Jung, A. & Heidrich, HG. The use of percoll gradients, elutriator rotor elution, and mithramycin staining for the isolation and identification of intraerythrocytic stages ofPlasmodium berghei . Z. Parasitenkd. 66, 273–280 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00925344

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00925344

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