As carefree as penguins might look, torpedoing through the water or rocketing into the air like a Poseidon missile, zoo penguins are stalked by an unrelenting killer: malaria. “It’s probably the top cause of mortality for penguins exposed outdoors,” said Dr. Allison N. Wack, a veterinarian at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore. The avian version is not a threat to humans because mosquitoes carrying … [Read more...]
Malaria No More Debuts “Power of One” (Po1) Campaign to Fight Malaria
Malaria No More announced today the debut of its most aggressive campaign to date: Power of One (Po1), where a one dollar donation provides a life-saving test and treatment for a child in Africa. The Power of One campaign uses the latest social, mobile, and e-commerce technologies to rally the global public to close malaria testing and treatment gaps in Africa, starting with Zambia. Malaria No … [Read more...]
Effect of Iron Supplements On Children Living in Malaria-Endemic Areas
Children in a malaria-endemic community in Ghana who received a micronutrient powder with iron did not have an increased incidence of malaria, according to a study in the September 4 issue of JAMA. Previous research has suggested that iron supplementation for children with iron deficiency in malaria-endemic areas may increase the risk of malaria. “In sub-Saharan Africa, malaria is a leading … [Read more...]
Exchange Transfusion for Treatment of Severe Malaria No Longer Recommended
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) no longer recommends the use of exchange transfusion (ET) as an adjunct to antimalarial drugs for the treatment of severe malaria. ET is a procedure in which a portion of blood from the infected patient is removed and replaced with uninfected blood. Previously, the rationale for the use of ET in severe malaria was that ET removed infected cells … [Read more...]
How Malaria Parasites Stick to Sides of Blood Vessels
Researchers have identified how malaria parasites growing inside red blood cells stick to the sides of blood vessels in severe cases of malaria. The discovery may advance the development of vaccines or drugs to combat severe malaria by stopping the parasites attaching to blood vessels. The results are now published in the scientific journal Nature. Though researchers have known for over a … [Read more...]
Drug Resistance May Make Malaria Parasite Less Resistant to Other Substances
Malaria parasites that develop resistance to the most effective class of anti-malarial drugs may become susceptible to other treatments as a result. The discovery could reveal potential new drug options, which would be essential in the event of resistance to the best anti-malarials. In a new study, researchers have shown how the anti-malarials artemisinins attack the malaria parasite by … [Read more...]
Take Action to Stop Counterfeit Malaria Drugs
This campaign was launched by the Dutch Malaria Foundation on World Malaria Day 2013: " If one out of three doses of anti-malaria drugs on the African market are fake or substandard, how can we expect to reduce the number of children dying from this terrible disease? Good drugs save lives. Fake drugs kill. On behalf of millions of people that run this unacceptable risk every day, we say … [Read more...]
Malaria Infected Mosquitoes Attracted to Human Odor
Abstract There is much evidence that some pathogens manipulate the behaviour of their mosquito hosts to enhance pathogen transmission. However, it is unknown whether this phenomenon exists in the interaction of Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto with the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum - one of the most important interactions in the context of humanity, with malaria causing over 200 … [Read more...]
WHO Launches Program to Counter Drug-Resistant Malaria
On World Malaria Day, the World Health Organization has launched an emergency program in Phnom Penh to tackle a worrying regional trend - a strain of malaria that is proving resistant to the most important anti-malarial drug. Six years ago, health researchers were worried after a strain of malaria in western Cambodia began to show resistance to the world’s key malaria treatment - … [Read more...]
Gene Allowing Malaria Parasite to Survive in Mosquitos ID’d
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) researchers have identified a gene that helps malaria-causing parasites elude the mosquito immune system, allowing the microbes to transmit efficiently to people when the insect takes a blood meal. The findings appear in the May 9, 2013, online issue of Science. Background Malaria is caused by a single-celled parasite from the … [Read more...]