Plasmodium falciparum News and Research

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New malaria vaccine strain shows promise in preclinical trials

In a report published on March 21, 2024 in EMBO Molecular Medicine (A replication competent Plasmodium falciparum parasite completely attenuated by dual gene deletion) investigators at Seattle Children's Research Institute and Sanaria Inc. describe the development of a whole malaria parasite vaccine strain that infects the liver, develops to the late liver stage, and then gets completely stuck and cannot burst out of the liver to cause symptomatic blood infection.

2 Apr 2024

"Copy-paste" genetic mechanism increases the genetic diversity of malaria parasite

By dissecting the genetic diversity of the most deadly human malaria parasite – Plasmodium falciparum – researchers at EMBL's European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) have identified a mechanism of 'copy-paste' genetics that increases the genetic diversity of the parasite at accelerated time scales.

7 Mar 2024

Novel malaria test by Rice University offers rapid diagnosis and treatment

Rice University researchers have developed a rapid, accurate test for diagnosing malaria that is significantly faster and easier to use than traditional tests.

29 Feb 2024

Researchers discover protein key to toxoplasmosis pathogen multiplication

Researchers have identified a protein that evolved concurrently with the emergence of cellular compartments crucial for the multiplication of the toxoplasmosis pathogen.

16 Feb 2024

New structural insights pave the way for drug-resistant malaria therapies

Structural insights into a potent antimalarial drug candidate's interaction with the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum have paved the way for drug-resistant malaria therapies, according to a new study by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine and Van Andel Institute.

18 Jan 2024

Breakthrough in Malaria detection: new FREM platform delivers 98% accuracy for rapid screening and genotyping

The Flexible, Robust, Equipment-free Microfluidic (FREM) platform for malaria screening and Plasmodium species genotyping.

1 Dec 2023

Atovaquone "chemical vaccine" for malaria could be more feasible than thought

Johns Hopkins researchers looking to develop a long-acting, injectable malaria preventive using atovaquone have shown in a new study that resistance may not be the challenge scientists thought it was, particularly when using atovaquone as a malaria preventive.

20 Oct 2023

Can falsified or substandard antimicrobials increase antimicrobial resistance?

The association between substandard or falsified (SF) antibiotics and antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

5 Oct 2023

New artemisinin-resistant malaria parasite detected in Eritrea

Diagnosis of Plasmodium falciparum malaria using rapid diagnostic tests and treatment with artemisinin derivatives, the main component of the malaria treatments recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), are under threat in the Horn of Africa.

29 Sep 2023

Scientists identify malaria-causing parasites resistant to both treatment and detection in Ethiopia

Scientists have detected new strains of malaria-causing parasites in Ethiopia that are both resistant to current treatments and escape detection by common diagnostic tests -; a development that could increase cases and deaths from malaria and make eliminating the persistent disease an even greater challenge.

11 Sep 2023

lncRNAs play role in malaria parasite's life cycle, study finds

The mosquito-borne infectious disease malaria resulted in about 241 million clinical episodes and 627,000 deaths in 2020.

28 Aug 2023

Current methods overestimate malaria parasite multiplication rates

Current methods can vastly overestimate the rates that malaria parasites are multiplying in an infected person's blood, which has important implications for determining how harmful they could be to a host, according to a new report.

17 Aug 2023

Novel noninvasive test for malaria does not require a blood sample

A novel testing platform under development by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health (YSPH) and CytoAstra, LLC could provide a new noninvasive test for malaria that doesn't require a blood sample.

28 Jul 2023

New regulatory system discovered in malaria parasite

Gene expression within the apicoplast, an organelle in the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, is regulated by melatonin (the circadian signaling hormone) in host blood, and intrinsic parasite cues, via a factor called ApSigma, as identified by a recent study aided by Tokyo Tech's World Research Hub Initiative.

3 Jul 2023

Microscopic and submicroscopic malaria in pregnancy: a systematic review and meta-analysis investigates prevalence and associated risk factors

Researchers conducted a systematic review to describe the epidemiology of submicroscopic and microscopic malaria infections during pregnancy.

22 Jun 2023

Stronger defense: symptomatic malaria provides durable protection against reinfection

Researchers evaluated the immune protection conferred by symptomatic and asymptomatic P. falciparum.

14 Jun 2023

Study identifies key genetic mechanism of drug resistance in the deadliest malaria parasites

An important genetic mechanism of drug resistance in one of the deadliest human malaria parasites has been identified in a new study published in Nature Microbiology.

11 May 2023

Leaves of the Labrador tea plant contain an essential oil that could help combat malaria

Much of what is now considered modern medicine originated as folk remedies or traditional, Indigenous practices. These customs are still alive today, and they could help address a variety of conditions.

11 May 2023

Genomic study reveals Babesia duncani's pathogenicity and virulence

'Tis the season for hiking now that spring has arrived and temperatures are on the upswing. But with hikes come insect bites and on the increase in North America is babesiosis, a malaria-like disease spread especially between May and October by a tick.

13 Apr 2023

The immunogenicity of two leading malaria vaccine candidates delivered as mRNA-LNP vaccines

Researchers evaluated the immunogenicity of two vaccine candidates, Pfs25 and PfCSP, based on the mRNA-lipid nanoparticle (LNP) platform.

13 Feb 2023