QUESTION: Plasmodium falciparum AMA1 was discovered how? ANSWER: AMA1 stands for "apical membrane antigen 1", and it is a protein expressed in the cell membrane of the P. falciparum parasites. Whereas many of these antigenic proteins are highly variable between parasites, this one appears to be relatively well conserved in evolutionary terms, and therefore is a leading drug target … [Read more...]
Chloroquine Resistant Malaria
QUESTION What is chloroquine resistant malaria? ANSWER Chloroquine-resistant malaria is exactly what it sounds like—particular types of malaria which are not cured by treatment with chloroquine. Chloroquine was first discovered in the 1930s in Germany and began to be widely used as an anti-malaria post-World War II, in the late 1940s. However, resistance to the drug also rapidly … [Read more...]
Examination of Malaria Parasite
QUESTION How can you examine malaria parasites? ANSWER Malaria parasites are usually examined under a microscope using a peripheral blood smear method (also called a blood film). Thick blood smears, which use a large unsmeared drop of blood, are sensitive since a large number of red blood cells can be examined, though the parasites, if present, are difficult to distinguish … [Read more...]
Anti-Malarial Tablets for Kenya
QUESTION Which are the best tablets to take against malaria in Kenya? Is there a malaria vaccination? ANSWER I'll answer your second question first—no, there does not yet exist a commercially available malaria vaccine. Currently, one promising vaccine candidate is undergoing Phase 3 clinical trials in children in sub-Saharan Africa; recently published preliminary findings suggest … [Read more...]
How to Prevent Malaria
QUESTION How to prevent malaria? ANSWER Despite its wide geographic range and potentially severe consequences, there are actually several effective strategies for controlling malaria, many of which have been successful of reducing the burden of the disease, and especially the number of deaths, in various regions. The first step towards control is prevention. This has largely been … [Read more...]
Pathophysiology of Malaria
QUESTION What is the pathophysiology of malaria? ANSWER Malaria causes disease through a number of pathways, which depend to a certain extent on the species. 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 … [Read more...]
Does all malaria kill without treatment?
QUESTION: Does all malaria kill without treatment? ANSWER: No. There are five main species of malaria which infect humans: Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, P. malariae and P. knowlesi. Of these, P. falciparum is the most deadly, and can often cause death if left untreated. The other four may also result in death, but more rarely, and usually only in high risk individuals, … [Read more...]
Malaria and Blood Cells
QUESTION What effect does malaria have on blood cells? ANSWER Malaria survives by invading red blood cells (erythrocytes), then replicating within them several times (the exact number and timing of replication depends on the species of malaria), then, once done with replication, bursts from inside the red blood cells, destroying it in the process. As such, malaria infection decreases the … [Read more...]
Symptoms of Malaria
QUESTION What are the symptoms of malaria? ANSWER The symptoms of malaria include fever and flu-like illness, including shaking chills, headache, muscle aches, and tiredness. Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may also occur. Malaria may cause anemia and jaundice (yellow coloring of the skin and eyes) because of the loss of red blood cells. Infection with one type of malaria, Plasmodium … [Read more...]
Treatment for Malaria
QUESTION: What is the main medicine to cure malaria and about safety precautions? ANSWER: There are a number of medicines used to treat malaria. Traditionally, chloroquine has been the first line drug of choice for uncomplicated, non-resistant malaria. However, several types of malaria, and most notably Plasmodium falciparum, the most severe and deadly kind, has become resistant to … [Read more...]