Malaria News and Research

Latest Malaria News and Research

c-myc gene found to play role in immune system

c-myc, a gene commonly involved in cancer onset, has been found to have a role in the immune system's normal function according to a study published in Blood.

11 May 2006

Discovery of new type of cell that generates crucial immune system cells

A new type of cell that generates crucial cells of the immune system has been discovered at The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute.

8 May 2006

Protein produced by immune cells during malaria infection triggers severe anemia

Richard Bucala and colleagues at Yale University show that immune cells in mice with malaria secrete a protein called MIF, which decreases the production of red blood cells (RBCs) from the bone marrow. The study appears in The Journal of Experimental Medicine.

3 May 2006

Method by which Caspase-12 shuts down the body's immune system discovered

Caspase-12 is a molecule with a death-wish. Found only in people of African descent, this protein shuts down our body's immune system, opening the door to potentially lethal infections. In a groundbreaking new study published in the prestigious journal Nature this week, the team that first discovered the role of caspase-12 in humans has now uncovered the mechanism by which it sabotages us, allowing researchers to develop methods to counter its damaging effects.

28 Apr 2006

Potential vaccine for visceral leishmaniasis developed

Development of a fundamentally new "candidate," or potential, vaccine for visceral leishmaniasis (LEASH-ma-NIGH-a-sis), a parasitic disease that kills about 60,000 people annually, is reported in the current issue of ACS Chemical Biology. Spread by the bite of infected female sand flies, visceral leishmaniasis infects about 500,000 people annually, with the majority of cases occurring in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sudan and Brazil.

26 Apr 2006

"Malaria free Aceh" campaign launches in Indonesia

Everyone has experienced it - the buzzing sound of mosquitoes interrupting a restful night's sleep. In Indonesia's Aceh province, the hardest-hit area of the 2005 catastrophic tsunami, mosquitoes are more than just an annoyance. They carry a deadly disease - malaria.

19 Apr 2006

Cheap way to produce expensive malaria drug well on the way

U.S. researchers say a cheap way to produce an expensive but effective malaria drug is well on the way.

13 Apr 2006

WHO report says rich must stop poaching medical staff from poor

A critical shortage of doctors and nurses is causing unnecessary disease and death across much of the developing world as rich nations poach health-care workers.

10 Apr 2006

New therapy proven to be effective in the treatment of MRS

Cosmetic considerations and a perceived lack of patent opportunities could be stopping the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries from investing in the development of a new therapy proven to be effective in the treatment of MRSA.

6 Apr 2006

Johns Hopkins launches program to improve public health education in Africa

The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health will lead a five-year initiative to strengthen the capacity of public health schools in East Africa.

5 Apr 2006

Scientists discover structure of malaria defense process

Scientists from two universities in Italy and Virginia Tech in the United States have determined the structure of a protein that is responsible for the production xanthurenic acid (XA) in Anopheles gambiae, the malaria carrying mosquitoes.

4 Apr 2006

Breakthrough in search for new anti-malarial drugs

Scientists at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia have made a significant discovery in the fight against malaria. Drexel researchers, along with a research group at the University of Washington, have determined a critical molecular structure of the cellular motor that allows the malaria parasite to invade human cells.

4 Apr 2006

Responding to AIDS, TB, Malaria and emerging infectious diseases in Burma

Government policies in Burma that restrict public health and humanitarian aid have created an environment where AIDS, drug-resistant tuberculosis, malaria and bird flu (H5N1) are spreading unchecked, according to a report by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

4 Apr 2006

Malaria, mosquitoes and man - breaking a deadly cycle

Malaria kills a child every thirty seconds in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to recent estimates. It is a huge problem currently threatening over 40% of the world’s population and still on the increase.

31 Mar 2006

AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and bird flu spread unchecked in Burma

28 Mar 2006

Will the next pandemic be tuberculosis?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the U.S., drug-resistant strains of tuberculosis (TB) are on the rise and present the threat of a pandemic.

26 Mar 2006

Could global warming be contributing to the resurgence of malaria?

A widely-cited study published a few years ago said no, but new research by an international team that includes University of Michigan theoretical ecologist Mercedes Pascual finds that, while other factors such as drug and pesticide resistance, changing land use patterns and human migration also may play roles, climate change cannot be ruled out.

22 Mar 2006

New agreement on Chinese malaria vaccine candidate

In a move that promises to expand the clinical testing of another promising malaria vaccine candidate, the US-based PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI) and the Chinese company Shanghai Wanxing Bio-Pharmaceuticals today announced an agreement that supports the development of a pediatric malaria vaccine against Plasmodium (P.) falciparum, the most deadly strain of malaria.

15 Mar 2006

Three dead in Azerbaijan from bird flu

According to government health officials in Azerbaijan, three people have died from bird flu there. They are the country's first known cases of the virus in humans.

14 Mar 2006

Scientists create a mosquito resistant to Type 2 dengue fever virus

Researchers have successfully created a genetically engineered mosquito that shows a high level of resistance against the most prevalent type of dengue fever virus, providing a powerful weapon against a disease that infects 50 million people each year.

9 Mar 2006