Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV) is the etiological agent of Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS). Both KSHV and HIV infections are endemic in Uganda, where KS is among the most common cancers in HIV-infected individuals. Recent studies examined the use of small RNAs as biomarkers of disease, including microRNAs (miRNAs), with viral and tumor-derived miRNAs being detected in exosomes from individuals with … [Read more...]
Targeting NAD+ Metabolism in the Human Malaria Parasite Plasmodium falciparum
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is an essential metabolite utilized as a redox cofactor and enzyme substrate in numerous cellular processes. Elevated NAD+ levels have been observed in red blood cells infected with the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, but little is known regarding how the parasite generates NAD+. Here, we employed a mass spectrometry-based metabolomic approach to … [Read more...]
What Body Systems are Affected by Malaria?
Question: What tissues,organs and/or body systems are affected by malaria? Answer: The malaria parasite is transmitted through blood and has an immediate effect on red blood cells. The most common symptoms of malaria including fever, are caused when the parasites invade red blood cells (erythrocytes) and rupture. However, there are five species of the Plasmodium parasite that cause … [Read more...]
Is malaria a blood borne pathogen?
Question: Is malaria a bloodborne pathogen? Answer: Yes. Malaria is caused by a single-celled parasite of the genus Plasmodium (there are five species which infect humans, being Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, P. malariae and P. knowlesi), introduced into the human blood stream through the bite of an infected anopheles mosquito. To learn more about how the malaria parasite … [Read more...]
What is the Malaria Parasite?
Question: What is the malaria parasite? Answer: Malaria is caused by a single-celled parasite of the genus Plasmodium; there are five species which infect humans, being Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, P. malariae and P. knowlesi. All these species are introduced into the human blood stream through the bite of an infected female anopheles mosquito. … [Read more...]
Chorangiosis Implicated in Pregnant Women Infected with Malaria
A passing remark launched the project that will be described at the Experimental Biology 2013 conference in Boston on Monday. A poster, presented by undergraduate Ashley McMichael from Albany State University, has preliminary data that hint that there is an association between a rare pregnancy condition and malaria. The remark that launched the project was made by a collaborator of Julie Moore, … [Read more...]
Is it Malaria Relapse?
QUESTION WHILE IN VIETNAM, I HAD VIVAX AND FACIPRIUM MALARIA. THE OLDER I GET I COME DOWN WITH THE CHILLS, FEVER AND PROFUSE SWEATING. BLOOD TEST NEVER DOES SHOW ANY MALARIA BUT DOES SHOW THE VIVAX ANTIBODIES. DOES THIS MEAN I STILL HAVE MALARIA OR HOW LONG DO THE ANTIBODIES REMAIN IN MY BODY AND WHY NO MALARIA CELLS? ANSWER Antibodies to malaria can persist in the body for years after … [Read more...]
Whole-plant Artemisia May Curtail Malaria Drug Resistance
Malaria affects millions of people in the developing world each year, and fighting the disease can be difficult, because the mosquito-borne parasite Plasmodium falciparum, which causes the deadliest form of malaria, has developed resistance to every anti-malaria drug. Molecular parasitologist Stephen Rich at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is leading a research team that has found a … [Read more...]
URGENT HELP ON MALARIA
QUESTION I 25 yr old male from Lagos, Nigeria. I have been having frequent malaria since 2006 till present. My symptoms are always weakness of the body, feeling cold sometimes not always and also my mouth got better most cases. I have been to the hospital several times and the doctor told me my frequent malaria is because my blood genotype is AA and also am having a malaria parasites. I was … [Read more...]
Malaria or Kidney Infection?
QUESTION Two months ago my daughter was in Uganda working and when came back to the States she was hospitalized for 4 days with Malaria symptoms. Her tests came back negative they really didn't act like they knew how to treat this. They kept telling her they didn't know how to diagnosis Malaria. So they treated her for it. She now after 2 months is once again hospitalized with the same … [Read more...]