The contribution of in silico studies in Parasitology: A multifaceted approach

Document Type : Review Article

Authors

Medical Parasitology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt

Abstract

The concept of a technical investigation using computational models (in silico) gained much attention of the
scientific community over the past two decades. Though being relatively new, it succeeded in fulfilling several
defects, and answering many problems that were left unresolved by the traditional experimental models
such as in vivo, ex vivo, and in vitro studies. The drawbacks of in vivo models, for instance, include the use
of animal models that may not exactly simulate humans; besides carrying risks to humans subjected to the
experiment. Because both ex vivo and in vitro studies are conducted outside the body, they do not consider the
interactive dynamics taking place inside the human body. Recently, the use of computational models evolved
and was implemented in several areas of scientific research. The present review aims to highlight new model
applications of in silico studies in parasitic diseases, in order to attain two main outcomes: understanding
the parasite biology and the host-parasite relationship. This in return would lead to the identification of
potential diagnostic biomarkers, drug targets, vaccine candidates, and new aspects of parasite epidemiology,
molecular barcoding, phylogenetic tree construction, population epigenetics as well as suggested potential
gene mutations linked to drug resistance.

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