Plasmodium falciparum News and Research

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WHO/AFRO: Ghana, Kenya, and Malawi to participate in malaria vaccine pilot program

The World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa announced today that Ghana, Kenya, and Malawi will take part in a WHO-coordinated malaria vaccine implementation programme (MVIP) that will make the world’s first malaria vaccine available in selected areas, beginning in 2018.

26 Apr 2017

NIH announces 2017 ICEMR awards for 7 international malaria research centers

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, today announced approximately $9 million in first-year funding, subject to availability, for seven malaria research centers around the world.

21 Apr 2017

MIT biological engineers develop method to measure heme levels inside malaria parasite

The iron-containing molecule heme is necessary for life. Cells require heme to perform the chemical reactions that produce energy, among other critical tasks.

28 Feb 2017

Investigational malaria vaccine protects against multiple strains, study shows

An investigational malaria vaccine has protected a small number of healthy U.S. adults from infection with a malaria strain different from that contained in the vaccine, according to a study published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

22 Feb 2017

Researchers identify molecular signatures to predict efficacy of malaria vaccines

The acid test for a vaccine is: "Does it protect people from infection?" Emory Vaccine Center researchers have analyzed this issue for a leading malaria vaccine called RTS,S, and their results have identified candidate signatures, or biomarkers, in the blood of vaccinated subjects which predict the likelihood of success from vaccination.

13 Feb 2017

New discovery could lead to more effective malaria vaccine

A team at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute has discovered how a promising malarial vaccine target - the protein RH5 - helps parasites to invade human red blood cells.

11 Feb 2017

Virginia Tech researchers receive NIH grant to improve malaria drug

As long as parasites continue to mount resistance to malaria drugs, scientists will be faced with the task of developing new, improved pharmaceuticals.

3 Feb 2017

Anemia protects children against blood-stage malaria in Africa, UNC study finds

Iron deficiency is the most common nutritional deficiency in the world and causes long-term adverse consequences in children.

5 Jan 2017

Most rapid diagnostic tests fail to detect P. falciparum malaria parasites in asymptomatic children

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has one of the highest rates of people living with malaria. Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) account for more than 70 percent of diagnostic testing for malaria in Africa.

17 Nov 2016

Researchers discover set of immune proteins that facilitate long-lasting immunity against malaria

Houston Methodist researchers have discovered a set of immune proteins that facilitate long-lasting immunity against malaria.

7 Nov 2016

Findings offer renewed hope for speedy development curative medicines for people with toxoplasmosis

In the July 14 edition of Scientific Reports (Nature), 39 researchers from 14 leading institutions in the United States, United Kingdom and France suggest novel approaches that could hasten the development of better medications for people suffering from toxoplasmosis.

17 Jul 2016

Home test using paper strips could help detect cancer, malaria

What if testing yourself for cancer or other diseases were as easy as testing your blood sugar or taking a home pregnancy test? In a few years, it might be.

29 Jun 2016

Genomic techniques help scientists understand diversity of P.vivax parasites

While most malaria research has focused on the parasite Plasmodium falciparum, which is common in Africa, another parasite, Plasmodium vivax (P.vivax) is responsible for the majority of malaria infections outside this region, causing an estimated 15.8 million clinical malaria cases each year.

28 Jun 2016

KARMA study confirms resistance to anti-malarial drugs confined to Southeast Asia

The first global mapping of artemisinin resistance has definitively confirmed that resistance to the main drug currently used in the treatment of Plasmodium falciparum malaria is for the moment confined to Southeast Asia and has not spread to sub-Saharan Africa.

24 Jun 2016

Malaria parasites use complement system to evade human immune response, study finds

The malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum hijacks an immune system process to invade red blood cells, according to a study led by researchers at Penn State College of Medicine. Understanding how malaria invades the cells could lead to a more effective vaccine.

26 May 2016

Experimental vaccine protects healthy U.S. adults from malaria infection for more than one year

An experimental malaria vaccine protected a small number of healthy, malaria-naïve adults in the United States from infection for more than one year after immunization, according to results from a Phase 1 trial described in the May 9th issue of Nature Medicine.

10 May 2016

Scientists find new way to defend against deadly malarial parasite

The most dangerous malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, is responsible for nearly half a million deaths annually across Africa and Southeast Asia. Of increasing concern, this parasite is now developing resistance to common antimalarial drugs.

15 Apr 2016

GHIT Fund invests in two innovative malaria eradication tools

The Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT Fund) announced today that it’s investing US$1,383,785 in a pair of innovative malaria eradication tools—a vaccine that could block transmission of two species of the deadly disease and a rapid field test that can reveal a malaria infection in minutes.

1 Apr 2016

Competition between mixed malaria parasite strains could influence drug resistance

Scientists have documented for the first time how competition among different malaria parasite strains in human hosts could influence the spread of drug resistance.

23 Mar 2016

Whole genome sequencing of chimpanzee parasite reveals clues about human malaria

Understanding the origins of emerging diseases - as well as more established disease agents -- is critical to gauge future human infection risks and find new treatment and prevention approaches. This holds true for malaria, which kills more than 500,000 people a year. Symptoms, including severe anemia, pregnancy-associated malaria, and cerebral malaria, have been linked to the parasite's ability to cause infected red blood cells to bind to the inner lining of blood vessels.

22 Mar 2016