Parasite Shows Its Plantlike Side.

The article discusses research being done on parasitic protozoans. It references a study by Kisaburo Nagamune et al. to be published in the January 10, 2008 issue of "Nature." The researchers claims that Toxoplasma gondii, an animal-like, parasitic protozoan, relies on a biochemical pathway that is plantlike. One of the similarities found by the researchers is the presence of abscisic acid, a hormone that in plants controls stress responses and dormancy.