however, it appears to have diverged from the P. falciparum- P. reichenowi clade about . A second report has confirmed the existence of this species in chimpanzees. This report has also shown that P. falciparum is not a uniquely human parasite as had been previously believed. A third report on the epidemiology of P. falciparum has been published. This study investigated two mitochondrial genes (cytB and cox1), one plastid gene (tufA), and one nuclear gene (ldh) in 12 chimpanzees and two gorillas from Cameroon and one lemur from Madagascar. Plasmodium falciparum was found in one gorilla and two chimpanzee samples. Two chimpanzee samples tested positive for Plasmodium ovale and one for Plasmodium malariae. Additionally one chimpanzee sample showed the presence of P. reichenowi and another P. gaboni. A new species - Plasmodium malagasi - was provisionally identified in the lemur. This species seems likely to belong to the Vinckeia subgenus but further work is required. A study of ~3000 wild ape specimens collected from Central Africa has shown that Plasmodium infection is common and is usually with multiple species. The ape species included in the study were western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla), eastern gorillas (Gorilla beringei), bonobos (Pan paniscus) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). 99% of the strains fell into six species within the subgenus Laverina. P. falciparum formed a monophyletic lineage within the gorilla parasite radiation suggesting an origin in gorillas rather than chimpanzees. It has been shown that P. falciparum forms a clade with the species P. reichenowi. This clade may have originated between and 10000 years ago. It is proposed that the origin of P. falciparum may have occurred when its precursors developed the ability to bind to sialic acid Neu5Ac possibly via erythrocyte binding protein 175. Humans lost the ability to make the sialic acid Neu5Gc from its precursor Neu5Ac several million years ago and this may have protected them against infection with P. reichenowi. Another paper has suggested that the P. falciparum isolates found in apes are derived from humans and that P. falciparum and P. reichenowi diverged when humans and chimpanzees/gorillas did (between and ). It is considered that P. falciparum in humans originated from a single transmission event and that the great apes do not represent a potential reservoir for on going transmission. The origin of P. falciparum in humans seems likely to have been from bonobos rather than gorillas or chimpanzees. Another estimate of