Table 1.

Features of Plasmodium persisters.

Traits	Description	References
Location of the dormant cells	Host’s red blood cells and hepatocytes (P. vivax, P. ovale)	[48,66,67,68]
Transcriptome changes	Stage-specific gene expression, variant surface antigens (VSAs) expression (including the var gene family, which encodes the erythrocyte membrane protein 1 PfEMP1), utilizing non-coding RNAs, inducing stress-responsive pathways. Overexpression of genes encoding specific cellular RBPs and proteases like Vivapains	[33,34,49]
Translatome changes	DOZI binding to the ribonucleoprotein complex, with translation repression. Phosphorylation of eIF2α and formation of stress granules. Translational repression	[41,58,59,63,64,65]
Metabolomic changes	Metabolic activity decrease, nutrient uptake decrease, and active apicoplasts and mitochondria. Restructuring of mitochondria–nucleus interaction.	[43,46,57]