P. falciparum is the sole human-infective member of a subgenus of Plasmodium that infects apes called the Laverania. Unlike malaria species from other evolutionary lineages, the seven characterized species of the Laverania are unique for their expression of EMP1 on the surface of infected RBCs [7] where it binds to molecules on the host endothelial surface and enables the infected cell to adhere to blood vessel walls, thus sequestering the parasites from the peripheral circulation and avoiding destruction in the spleen [8]. This evidence concerns the gene EMP1 and malaria.