Friedrich Frischknecht gives an insight into malaria and the biological complexity of the parasites that trigger it. The author takes the reader on a journey from the historical discovery of the pathogen to the modern methods of vaccine development. He explains how genetic manipulations help to understand the parasite and to develop novel vaccination approaches. He explains the difficulties that need to be overcome to eradicate malaria.The Prof. Dr. Friedrich Frischknecht studied biochemistry at the Freie Universitat Berlin and did his PhD on smallpox viruses at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg. After a research stay at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, he has been head of a research group at the University Hospital in Heidelberg since 2005 and is interested in the molecular basis of the movement of malaria parasites.