Schistosoma_mansoni_genome_sequencing. Schistosoma_mansoni_genome_sequencing

Blood flukes of the genus Schistosoma (Platyhelminthes, Trematoda, Digenea) are responsible for the chronic debilitating disease schistosomiasis / bilharzia, widely considered to be second only to malaria as a global health problem and an incalculable drain on the economic development of endemic countries. Since 1994, the World Health Organization has supported a genome initiative for Schistosoma , the Schistosoma Genome Network, aimed at identifying new targets for drug and vaccine development, understanding the molecular basis of parasite metabolism and development and determining biological variation. That initiative developed, and continues to develop, resources and datasets that have provided a firm foundation from which large scale mapping and sequencing efforts have been launched. A draft genome has been produced by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in collaboration with The Institute for Genomic Research. This study aims to build upon the draft genome, using new sequencing technologies, to produce a reference genome for this organism.