ABSTRACT
The standard in vitro cultivation procedure for Plasmodium falciparum requires gas exchange and a microaerophilic atmosphere. A novel system using a commercially available cell culture device (Petaka G3™; Celartia Ltd., Powell, OH) was assessed for long-term cultivation of a P. falciparum reference laboratory clone in normal air. Parasite growth during 30 days was similar, or better, in Petaka G3 than that in the standard cultivation method with gas exchange in a CO2 incubator. The successful cultivation of P. falciparum in the Petaka G3 device suggests that low O2 content available in hemoglobin and dissolved gas in the blood is sufficient for long-term cultivation. This finding may open the way to novel methods to cultivate and adapt P. falciparum field isolates to in vitro conditions with more ease.