Parasitology News and Research

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Parasitology is the study of organisms that gain nutrients and protection from their host, without any benefit to the host.

International experts discuss threats posed by ticks and fleas

As experts from around the world met in New York this week they discussed the need for greater understanding of the threat posed by ticks, fleas and sand flies. Leading scientists called on veterinarians and dog-owners around the world to take action to protect dogs and humans from potentially lethal diseases.

16 Apr 2010

Also in global health news: Infant, maternal mortality in N. Korea; malaria in Cambodia; Zambia PEPFAR program; Pakistan's anti-polio campaign; U.N. Ambassador responds to Somalia; Myanmar refugees

Higher rates of infant and maternal mortality have lead to a decline of life expectancy in North Korea over the past 15 years, census figures, which were obtained with help form the U.N. Population Fund, said on Monday, Agence France-Presse reports (2/22).

23 Feb 2010

Research could help in developing protein-based vaccine against maternal malaria

Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have become the first in the world to synthesize the entire protein that is responsible for life-threatening malaria in pregnant women and their unborn children.

5 Feb 2010

Breakthrough in anti-malarial drug development

Malaria causes more than two million deaths each year, but an expert multinational team battling the global spread of drug-resistant parasites has made a breakthrough in the search for better treatment.

29 Jan 2010

Motility mechanism of malaria pathogens explained

How do one-celled parasites move from the salivary gland of a mosquito through a person's skin into red blood cells? What molecular mechanisms form the basis for this very important movement of the protozoa?

23 Dec 2009

Winners of the EDCTP Award For Outstanding African Scientist

The European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) has given its Awards for Outstanding African Scientist to Dr Alexis Nzila and Dr Dominique Pepper.

26 Oct 2009

The effects of antimicrobial therapy on bacterial vaginosis in non-pregnant women

Antimicrobial treatments for bacterial vaginosis (BV) are effective, but taking lactobacillus tablets alongside metronidazole antibiotic therapy increases effectiveness over taking this antibiotic alone, according to a Cochrane Systematic Review. The researchers also concluded that intravaginal lactobacillus was as effective as oral metronidazole, although they did note unexplained drop-outs from the trials.

7 Jul 2009

Malaria cases reported in Cambodian public facilities drop more than 50%

There was more than a 50 percent drop in the total number of malaria cases reported by public facilities in Cambodia between 2003 and 2008, according to the National Centre for Parasitology, Entomology and Malaria Control's annual report, which was released on Tuesday, the Phnom Penh Post reports. Officials are attributing the decrease to village-based treatment and education programs.

24 Jun 2009

Single gene found to control growth of some cancers

Research led by Ashok Aiyar, PhD, Associate Professor of Microbiology at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, showing that a single gene can control growth in cancers related to the Epstein-Barr virus and that existing therapeutics can inactivate it, will be published in the June 12, 2009 online issue of PLoS Pathogens.

15 Jun 2009

Scientists develop tool to study a deadly parasite’s histone code

In the Japanese art of paper folding, a series of folds can make the same sheet of paper into a ballerina or baby elephant. But try unfolding the baby elephant and making it into a ballerina. It's like trying to make a neuron from a kidney cell. Epigenetics, it turns out, isn't much different from this old Japanese art: Each fold, or epigenetic crease, both limits and permits further potential folds in a way that mirrors how epigenetic changes seal a cell's fate.

13 May 2009

African sleeping sickness parasite breaks its own DNA to avoid detection

The parasite Trypanosoma brucei, which causes African sleeping sickness, is like a thief donning a disguise.

15 Apr 2009

Emergence of parasites resistant to artemisinin could set back malaria control success

WHO today said that the emergence of parasites resistant to artemisinin at the Thai-Cambodia border could seriously undermine the success of the global malaria control efforts.

25 Feb 2009

The design of a vaccine against Leishmaniasis

The parasitology team at the "Severo Ochoa" Molecular biology centre (CSIC-UAM) has focused its research efforts on the search for a vaccine capable of activating immunity against the parasite that causes leishmaniasis.

7 May 2008

Manipulating the immune system like a parasite

One day it may be possible to mimic the tactics used by parasites to trick the body into accepting transplanted tissues or organs.

10 Apr 2008

Experts call for a global fund to combat neglected tropical diseases

An international team of tropical disease control experts has urged the global health and development community, and particularly the G8 leaders, to establish a new financing mechanism to combat the neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) of poverty.

28 Mar 2008

Alpha thalassemia blood disease protects against malaria

Children with an inherited blood disorder called alpha thalassemia make unusually small red blood cells that mostly cause a mild form of anemia.

18 Mar 2008

University of Rhode Island, Pakistan researchers address growing tick problem

Researchers from the University of Rhode Island's Center for Vector-Borne Disease are teaming with colleagues from Pakistan to help the south Asian nation address its growing tick problem.

4 Dec 2007

Novel strategy to inactivate encephalitis virus

A collaborative team of scientists from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) have developed a novel strategy to inactivate highly virulent Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) that can infect and kill both animals and humans.

31 Oct 2007