The Synaptic Leap

Blood samples were collected from vivax malaria patients without antimalarial drug therapy. . . .

OBJECTIVE: To study the protective effects on the infection of Schistosoma japonicum in C57BL/6 mice induced by dendritic cells DCs pulsed with GST in combination with CpG oligodeoxynucleotide. . . .

As the xenophobic North Korean regime of Kim Jong Il appears to be inching toward a murky transition of power, the United Nations is laying plans to spend more than $290 million on a welter of programs in the communist state—including a scheme to produc

After an extended break, whether it be a holiday or illness, most of us tend to drag our feet when heading back to work.

LONDON — Millions of free malaria drugs are sent to Africa every year by international donors. New research is now providing evidence for what health workers have long suspected: some of the donated medication is being stolen and resold on commerci

For years, it’s known that Anopheles gambiae -- the species of mosquito that spreads malaria which infects 250 million and kills 900,000 people annually -- use one family of odour sensors to track its human prey.

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Background: Safety data regarding exposure to artemisinin-based combination therapy in pregnancy are limited. This prospective cohort study conducted in Zambia evaluated the safety of artemether-lumefantrine (AL) in pregnant women with malaria. Methods: Pregnant women attending antenatal clinics were assigned to groups based on the drug used to treat their most recent malaria episode (AL vs. sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine, SP). Safety was assessed using standard and pregnancy-specific parameters. Post-delivery follow-up was six weeks for mothers and 12 months for live births. Primary outcome was perinatal mortality (stillbirth or neonatal death within seven days after birth). Results: Data from 1,001 pregnant women (AL n=495; SP n=506) and 933 newborns (AL n=466; SP n=467) showed: perinatal mortality (AL 4.2%; SP 5.0%), comprised of early neonatal mortality (each group 2.3%), stillbirths (AL 1.9%; SP 2.7%); preterm deliveries (AL 14.1%; SP 17.4% of foetuses); and gestational age-adjusted low birth weight (AL 9.0%; SP 7.7%). Infant birth defect incidence was 1.8% AL and 1.6% SP, excluding umbilical hernia. Abortions prior to antenatal care could not be determined: abortion occurred in 4.5% of women treated with AL during their first trimester; none were reported in the 133 women exposed to SP and/or quinine during their first trimester. Overall development (including neurological assessment) was similar in both groups. Conclusions: These data suggest that exposure to AL in pregnancy, including first trimester, is not associated with particular safety risks in terms of perinatal mortality, malformations, or developmental impairment. However, more data are required on AL use during the first trimester.

Heme is not only just the binding site responsible for oxygen transport by hemoglobin, but it is also the prosthetic group of many different heme-containing enzymes, such as cytochromes P450, peroxidases, catalase, and several proteins involved in electron transfer. . . .

This textual analyses on Social marketing, Insecticide Treated Nets (ITNs) and Population Services International (PSI) were undertaken to achieve two objectives: (a) to contribute to the continuing debate and search for a better strategy for combating malaria in sub-Saharan Africa; and (b) to contribute to theory building on social marketing. . . .

OBJECTIVE: Schistosomiasis is a global parasitic disease and ranks second to malaria in terms of socioeconomic and public health importance in tropical and subtropical areas. . . .

BACKGROUND: A substantial decline in malaria was reported to have occurred over several years until 2007 in the western part of The Gambia, encouraging consideration of future elimination in this previously highly endemic region. . . .

BACKGROUND: Home management of malaria (HMM), promoting presumptive treatment of febrile children in the community, is advocated to improve prompt appropriate treatment of malaria in Africa. . . .

Proposing a specialised public health cadre for infectious diseases like malaria and swine flu, Centre on Monday said a separate directorate of public health consisting of well-trained people in laboratory practices, surveillance and outreach investigatio

Children in Pakistan are bearing the brunt of water-borne illnesses spreading because of the floods, says the World Health Organization.

France's Bernard Kouchner, Japan's Katsuya Okada, and Belgium's Charles Michel discuss innovative financing to fund development projects that will help lift up the world's poorest people.

In Parassitologia, Vol. 41 (1999), 69-75.

An international consortium has been formed to sequence the entire genome of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. We sequenced chromosome 2 of clone 3D7 using a shotgun sequencing strategy. Chromosome 2 is 947 kb in length, has a base composition of 80.2% A + T, and contains 210 predicted genes. In comparison to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae genome, chromosome 2 has a lower gene density, a greater proportion of genes containing introns, and nearly twice as many proteins containing predicted non-globular domains. A group of putative surface proteins was identified, rifins, which are encoded by a gene family comprising up to 7% of the protein-encoding gene in the genome. The rifins exhibit considerable sequence diversity and may play an important role in antigenic variation. Sixteen genes encoded on chromosome 2 showed signs of a plastid or mitochondrial origin, including several genes involved in fatty acid biosynthesis. Completion of the chromosome 2 sequence demonstrated that the A + T-rich genome of P. falciparum can be sequenced by the shotgun approach. Within 2-3 years, the sequence of almost all P. falciparum genes will have been determined, paving the way for genetic, biochemical, and immunological research aimed at developing new drugs and vaccines against malaria.
MJ Gardner, H Tettelin, DJ Carucci, LM Cummings, HO Smith, CM Fraser, JC Venter, SL Hoffman