Experimental design to determine the early liver responses to malarial sporozoite infection. Cultured HepG2-A16 cells were treated with wild-type sporozoites (Spor), radiation-attenuated sporozoites (IrradSpor), or non-sporozoite containing salivary gland extract (SalGld) for 30, 90, and 180 min, following which cells were washed and lysed for RNA extraction. Non-treated cells (Control) were also included as comparison.