On the last Wednesday of each month, members of the eLife Early-Career Advisory Group invite experts to share their views and advice on subjects pertinent to research careers.

The sickle cell trait strongly protects against not only retinopathy-positive cerebral malaria but also retinopathy-negative cerebral malaria, providing evidence that malarial parasites also contribute to retinopathy-negative cerebral malaria and are not innocent bystanders.

Research into genomic imprinting has provided a foundation for the study of epigenetic mechanisms, especially during development, and has also shed light on a range of rare genetic disorders and common diseases.