Plasmodium falciparum News and Research

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Genetically modified mosquitoes and special bed nets help tackle deadly diseases

Researchers at the Imperial College’s South Kensington campus have successfully created genetically modified mosquitoes that would stop them from multiplying and spreading dreaded diseases such as malaria, Dengue, Chikungunya and Zika that kill millions worldwide annually.

13 Aug 2018

New laboratory-synthesized molecule appears to fight malaria effectively

A novel laboratory-synthesized molecule based in natural compounds found in marine gliding bacteria - known as marinoquinolines - is a strong candidate for the development of a new antimalarial drug.

10 Aug 2018

Discovery about how malaria moves could lead to new therapies

Researchers have made an important discovery about how Plasmodium falciparum (the parasite that causes malaria) is able to evade capture by the immune system.

23 Jul 2018

Research suggests new target for malaria vaccine

Researchers have shown that higher levels of Plasmodium falciparum antibodies are protective against severe malaria in children living in Papua New Guinea.

9 Jul 2018

Simple, accurate and reproducible assay to measure antibodies against malaria

Antibodies against multiple Plasmodium falciparum proteins (or antigens) can be measured using a simple, accurate and reproducible assay that requires very small amounts of blood.

3 Jul 2018

WHO: Paraguay achieves malaria-free status

The World Health Organization today certified Paraguay as having eliminated malaria, the first country in the Americas to be granted this status since Cuba in 1973.

12 Jun 2018

Paraguay declared free of malaria by WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) has certified that Paraguay has eliminated malaria, being the first country in the Americas to have done so since Cuba was given this status in 1973.

12 Jun 2018

Treating silent malaria cases could help stop spread of disease, shows study

In regions where malaria illness is widespread, it is common to find many individuals who are infected with malaria parasites, but without symptoms.

8 Jun 2018

New study puts forth most comprehensive tree of life for malaria parasites

A new study led by the American Museum of Natural History puts forth the most comprehensive tree of life for malaria parasites to date.

24 May 2018

Unexpected discovery could improve detection of malaria infections

While the global health community has made great strides toward eradicating malaria through prevention and treatment strategies, rapid and inexpensive methods to diagnose submicroscopic malaria in individuals who have no clinical symptoms and undetectable levels of disease-causing parasites in their blood remain an unmet need.

4 May 2018

Study reveals essential malaria parasite genes

Researchers have exploited a quirk in the genetic make-up of the deadly malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, to create 38,000 mutant strains and then determine which of the organism's genes are essential to its growth and survival.

3 May 2018

New $3.2 million grant funds research to advance promising malaria vaccine

The Global Health Innovative Technology Fund has awarded the University of Florida and partners in the United States and Japan $3.2 million to advance a promising vaccine to prevent transmission of malaria.

29 Mar 2018

Researchers discover potential new antimalarial treatment targets

Researchers have discovered crucial new processes that allow malaria parasites to escape red blood cells and infect other cells, offering potential new treatment targets.

20 Feb 2018

SUTD-NCL team completes phenotypic screening of MMV Malaria Box against pathogenic parasites

A Singapore-India collaborative research project between the Singapore University of Technology & Design and CSIR-National Chemical Laboratories completed phenotypic screening of a large collection of potent chemical inhibitors (known as MMV Malaria Box), against pathogenic parasites Toxoplasma gondii and Plasmodium falciparum, causative agents of human toxoplasmosis and malaria.

27 Jan 2018

Researchers test new anti-malaria medication

An international research team has conducted successful phase II clinical tests of a new anti-malaria medication. The treatment led to a cure in 83 cases.

19 Jan 2018

Researchers identify potential alternatives to tackle drug resistant malaria parasites

A new analysis of all relevant previously published clinical data shows how parasites causing malaria become resistant to a commonly used treatment for malaria in travellers.

11 Dec 2017

Malaria parasite employs active strategy to deceive the immune system

Global efforts to eradicate malaria are crucially dependent on scientists' ability to outsmart the malaria parasite. And Plasmodium falciparum is notoriously clever: It is quick to develop resistance against medications and has such a complex life cycle that blocking it effectively with a vaccine has thus far proved elusive.

7 Dec 2017

Research could contribute to development of therapeutic drug and vaccine against malaria

Malaria is one of three major infectious diseases affecting approximately 300 million people every year, accounting for about 500,000 deaths, but effective vaccine development has not been successful.

4 Dec 2017

Penn researchers find evidence of new malaria species in wild bonobos

Malaria parasites, although widespread among wild chimpanzees and gorillas, have not been detected in bonobos, a chimp cousin. Reasoning that previous studies may have missed infected bonobo populations, a team led by Beatrice Hahn, MD, a professor of Microbiology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, conducted a more extensive survey, increasing both the number and places they sampled wild bonobo populations.

21 Nov 2017

Malaria parasites’ decision making influenced by fatty molecule in human blood

Depletion of a fatty molecule in human blood propels malaria parasites to stop replicating and causing illness in people and instead to jump ship to mosquitoes to continue the transmission cycle, according to a new study by an international research team.

9 Nov 2017