The conjugation of antibodies against glycophorin A targeted the nanocarriers to <i>Plasmodium</i>-infected red blood cells and to gametocytes, the sole malaria parasite stage responsible for the transmission from the human to the mosquito vector.
DUP4 is a complex structural genomic variant that carries extra copies of a glycophorin A-glycophorin B fusion gene and has a dramatic effect on malaria risk by reducing the risk of severe malaria by up to 40%.