Tropical Disease News and Research

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Tropical diseases encompass all diseases that occur solely, or principally, in the tropics. In practice, the term is often taken to refer to infectious diseases that thrive in hot, humid conditions, such as malaria, leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, onchocerciasis, lymphatic filariasis, Chagas disease, African trypanosomiasis, and dengue.

LSTM led partnership receives funding to develop drug for treating two neglected tropical diseases

An LSTM led partnership has been awarded nearly £1.5 million from the Medical Research Council for the pre-clinical development of a candidate drug to treat onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis, by targeting the bacterial symbiont Wolbachia.

14 Sep 2018

Researchers identify pathogenic Leptospira strains in Uruguay cattle

Leptospirosis infections, caused by Leptospira bacteria, occur in people and animals around the world, but different strains of the bacteria may vary in their ability to cause disease and to jump between species.

14 Sep 2018

Clinical trial begins to find better treatment for chronic cases of PKDL in Africa

A clinical trial to find a better treatment for severe or chronic cases of post kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL) in Africa has begun in Dooka, Sudan.

12 Sep 2018

Second case of Monkeypox infection identified in UK

United Kingdom has recorded the second cases of Monekypox within days of the first case. This second case was a patient who tested positive for the virus at Blackpool Victoria Hospital.

12 Sep 2018

Researchers report increasing incidence of visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil

The parasitic disease leishmaniasis is spread to humans through the bites of sandflies, and is endemic in a number of countries, including Brazil.

10 Sep 2018

GW researcher receives grant to examine link between liver fluke infection and bile duct cancer

Liver fluke infection is a major public health problem affecting more than 10 million people in Southeast Asia, particularly in Thailand and Laos. Infection has been strongly linked to cholangiocarcinoma, or bile duct cancer, an uncommon but aggressive form of cancer.

5 Sep 2018

Effective vaccines for world's most prevalent infectious diseases are missing from pipeline

Many of the vaccines critically needed to fight some of the world's most prevalent infectious diseases are not likely to be developed, a new analysis of current candidates in the research and development pipeline has found.

5 Sep 2018

Researchers identify Zika virus proteins with potential to affect brain development

In healthy individuals, the Zika virus causes flu-like symptoms. If a pregnant woman becomes infected, the unborn child can suffer from severe brain abnormalities as a result of mechanisms that have not yet been explained.

4 Sep 2018

Researchers report challenges in reducing tetanus mortality

The overall mortality in patients suffering non-neonatal tetanus is high. Efforts to reduce mortality in one sub-Saharan African intensive care unit by implementing a standard tetanus protocol did little to change mortality rates, although they shifted causes of deaths, researchers have now reported in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

31 Aug 2018

New assay using cellphone cameras developed for testing mosquitos, Wolbachia

Wolbachia bacteria are widely studied for possible properties to block transmission of viruses like chikungunya, dengue and zika.

31 Aug 2018

Scientists build model that predicts how temperature affects spread of Ross River virus

Scientists have built a model that predicts how temperature affects the spread of Ross River virus, a common mosquito-borne virus in Australia, according to a report in the journal eLife.

29 Aug 2018

Scientists develop urine diagnostic to detect parasitic worms that cause river blindness

Scientists at Scripps Research have developed a urine diagnostic to detect the parasitic worms that cause river blindness, also called onchocerciasis, a tropical disease that afflicts 18 to 120 million people worldwide.

28 Aug 2018

INRS professors develop innovative strategy to identify leishmanicidal molecules

Leishmania is a microorganism that enters the human body via a sandfly bite. Instead of fleeing the white blood cells deployed by the immune system to destroy it, the parasite allows itself to be swallowed up.

24 Aug 2018

Novel finger-prick test can help prevent toxoplasmosis

A recent study, performed in Chicago and Rabat, Morocco, found that a novel finger-prick test for infection with the parasite Toxoplasma gondii during pregnancy -; and many other potential applications -; is 100 percent sensitive and 100 percent specific for detecting the presence of this life-damaging microorganism.

17 Aug 2018

Study uncovers mechanism that affects multiplication of dengue virus lineage

A lineage of type 1 dengue virus found in Brazil is able to prevail over another even though it multiplies less in vector mosquitoes and infected human cells.

15 Aug 2018

Mosquito screening found to be useful for tracking recurrence of lymphatic filariasis

To ensure elimination of the Wuchereria bancrofti, a parasitic roundworm that causes lymphatic filariasis, public health workers must follow up mass drug administration with careful monitoring for recurrence.

27 Jul 2018

Fruit fly research leads to potential drug for debilitating diseases caused by parasitic worms

River blindness and elephantiasis are debilitating diseases caused by parasitic worms that infect as many as 150 million people worldwide.

13 Jul 2018

Purdue startup to create sensor that provides early detection of mosquito-borne diseases

A startup created by Purdue University professors is developing a sensor that can detect dangerous mosquito-borne tropical diseases faster and at a lower cost than current methods, giving health officials time to take action before the viruses are transmitted to humans.

13 Jul 2018

Scientists discover potential new drug to treat two life-threatening tropical diseases

Derived from nature, a potential new drug to treat two life-threatening tropical diseases has been discovered as a result of collaboration between two Welsh universities.

5 Jul 2018

Otago researchers shed light on neglected problem of typhoid fever in the Pacific

University of Otago researchers have been key partners in a study which has found poor sanitation facilities appear to be a major source of Salmonella Typhi, the cause of typhoid fever, in Fiji.

25 Jun 2018