Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0024530 (malaria)
 44,886 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Mice vaccinated with fixed parasitized red blood cells and Bordetella pertussis can clear an otherwise lethal Plasmodium yoelii infection in 7 days; this protection is abolished by splenectomy before vaccination. Most mice splenectomized following vaccination were able to clear their infections, although their recovery was delayed. When labelled parasitized red cells were injected into mice during an infection, splenic uptake fell from day 3 onwards while uptake by the liver increased. Lymphocytes (mainly T cells) formed the majority of the live cells extracted from livers 7 days after infection, although blasts and myeloid cells were also present. Infected livers from vaccinated mice contained most cells. Less marked increases were observed 7 days after P. berghei infection of vaccinated mice. Examination of liver tissue showed that the sinusoids contained increased numbers of cells and suggested that activation of Kupffer cells was occurring, particularly in vaccinated mice infected with P. yoelii. Homing experiments confirmed the increased trapping of various cells in livers of vaccinated mice infected with P. yoelii. These results suggest an important role for the liver in recovery from blood-stage malaria infection.
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PMID:The role of the liver in immunity to blood-stage murine malaria. 743 34

Retrospective and prospective demographic and health data collected on the population of Mlomp (6352 people in 1985), a rural area of Senegal, show that the probability of dying before the age of 5 years declined from 350 to 81 deaths per hundred livebirths in the last 25 years. This decline is greater and faster than ever observed in Senegal. The drop in mortality mainly results from improved access to new and efficient health services--a dispensary and a maternity clinic--and from growth surveillance, health education, vaccination and malaria programmes initiated in the 1960s and 1970s. Although socioeconomic conditions have changed in the area, the influence of classical factors such as women's educational level and improvement in transportation has probably been limited. Deaths from diseases that can be prevented by immunization (such as neonatal tetanus, measles, whooping cough) are now very rare (3% of the deaths of children under 5 years during the period 1985-1989). Although the risks of dying from diarrhoea or acute respiratory infections are much lower than in other rural areas of Senegal, these are still the main causes of deaths (33% and 19% of deaths after 1 month of age). Malaria, despite its high morbidity during the rainy season, causes few deaths (4%). This reflects the success of the health education programme promoting chemoprophylaxis and early treatment of fever cases. Mlomp is one example of an African rural area where the provision of well-organized health services at a reasonable cost has produced a dramatic decline in child mortality.
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PMID:Rapid decline in child mortality in a rural area of Senegal. 844 50

The antimicrobial spectrum of azithromycin and clarithromycin suggests a number of further uses for these newer macrolides. Favorable clinical and bacteriologic responses have been reported with both antibiotics in children with community-acquired pneumonia. Response rates were high for overall patient populations and for subgroups with infection caused by Mycoplasma pneumoniae and Chlamydia pneumoniae. Treatment with azithromycin or clarithromycin has resulted in a reduction in mycobacteremia and an improvement in clinical symptoms in adult AIDS patients with disseminated Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex. Prophylactic treatment with azithromycin may prevent M. avium-intracellulare complex, especially when combined with rifabutin. Preliminary evidence suggests that both azithromycin and clarithromycin in multidrug combinations may effectively eradicate Helicobacter pylori and that azithromycin may be useful in treating bacterial gastritis caused by Campylobacter species. Trachoma and infections caused by Bordetella pertussis and Ureaplasma urealyticum are other possible future indications for the newer macrolides. Limited clinical evidence also suggests that azithromycin may be effective in the prevention and treatment of malaria.
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PMID:Future indications for macrolides. 910 59

Glycosaminoglycans such as heparin, heparan sulphate and dermatan sulphate, are distributed widely in the human body. Several glycosaminoglycans form part of the extracellular matrix and heparan sulphate is expressed on all eukaryotic surfaces. The identification of specific binding to different glycosaminoglycan molecules by bacteria (e.g., Helicobacter pylori, Bordetella pertussis and Chlamydia trachomatis), viruses (e.g., herpes simplex and dengue virus), and protozoa (e.g., Plasmodium and Leishmania), is therefore of great interest. Expression of glycosaminoglycan-binding proteins depends on growth and culture conditions in bacteria, and differs in various phases of parasite development. Glycosaminoglycan-binding microbial proteins may mediate adhesion of microbes to eukaryotic cells, which may be a primary mechanism in mucosal infections, and are also involved in secondary effects such as adhesion to cerebral endothelia in cerebral malaria or to synovial membranes in arthritis caused by Borrelia burgdorferi. It has been suggested that they may enhance intracellular survival in macrophages. Microbial binding of heparin may interfere with heparin-dependent growth factors. Whether or not glycosaminoglycan-binding proteins mediate invasion of epithelial cells is a matter of controversy. Heparin and other glycosaminoglycans may have potential uses as therapeutic agents in microbial infections and could form part of future vaccines against such infections.
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PMID:Glycosaminoglycan-binding microbial proteins in tissue adhesion and invasion: key events in microbial pathogenicity. 1033 89

The gene coding for the acetyl-CoA synthetase (ADP-forming) from the amitochondriate eukaryote Giardia lamblia has been expressed in Escherichia coli. The recombinant enzyme exhibited the same substrate specificity as the native enzyme, utilizing acetyl-CoA and adenine nucleotides as preferred substrates and less efficiently, propionyl- and succinyl-CoA. N- and C-terminal parts of the G. lamblia acetyl-CoA synthetase sequence were found to be homologous to the alpha- and beta-subunits, respectively, of succinyl-CoA synthetase. Sequence analysis of homologous enzymes from various bacteria, archaea, and the eukaryote, Plasmodium falciparum, identified conserved features in their organization, which allowed us to delineate a new superfamily of acyl-CoA synthetases (nucleoside diphosphate-forming) and its signature motifs. The representatives of this new superfamily of thiokinases vary in their domain arrangement, some consisting of separate alpha- and beta-subunits and others comprising fusion proteins in alpha-beta or beta-alpha orientation. The presence of homologs of acetyl-CoA synthetase (ADP-forming) in such human pathogens as G. lamblia, Yersinia pestis, Bordetella pertussis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Vibrio cholerae, Salmonella typhi, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and the malaria agent P. falciparum suggests that they might be used as potential drug targets.
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PMID:Acetyl-CoA synthetase from the amitochondriate eukaryote Giardia lamblia belongs to the newly recognized superfamily of acyl-CoA synthetases (Nucleoside diphosphate-forming). 1068 68

India is the second most populous country of the world and has changing socio-political-demographic and morbidity patterns that have been drawing global attention in recent years. Despite several growth-orientated policies adopted by the government, the widening economic, regional and gender disparities are posing challenges for the health sector. About 75% of health infrastructure, medical man power and other health resources are concentrated in urban areas where 27% of the population live. Contagious, infectious and waterborne diseases such as diarrhoea, amoebiasis, typhoid, infectious hepatitis, worm infestations, measles, malaria, tuberculosis, whooping cough, respiratory infections, pneumonia and reproductive tract infections dominate the morbidity pattern, especially in rural areas. However, non-communicable diseases such as cancer, blindness, mental illness, hypertension, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, accidents and injuries are also on the rise. The health status of Indians, is still a cause for grave concern, especially that of the rural population. This is reflected in the life expectancy (63 years), infant mortality rate (80/1000 live births), maternal mortality rate (438/100 000 live births); however, over a period of time some progress has been made. To improve the prevailing situation, the problem of rural health is to be addressed both at macro (national and state) and micro (district and regional) levels. This is to be done in an holistic way, with a genuine effort to bring the poorest of the population to the centre of the fiscal policies. A paradigm shift from the current 'biomedical model' to a 'sociocultural model', which should bridge the gaps and improve quality of rural life, is the current need. A revised National Health Policy addressing the prevailing inequalities, and working towards promoting a long-term perspective plan, mainly for rural health, is imperative.
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PMID:Current health scenario in rural India. 1204 9

This article discusses changes in disease patterns affecting human health that may be related to environmental and social changes in the world. The World Health Report reveals that 30 new diseases emerged in the past 20 years. Old diseases are becoming resistant to new drugs. Infectious diseases that were in decline are spreading: diphtheria, whooping cough, and measles. Illnesses such as malaria, fevers, cholera, and rodent-borne viruses are becoming more frequent. Diseases that are transmitted by animals or water are related to environmental and social changes. Degraded environments are susceptible to the appearance of opportunistic species, such as weeds, rodents, insects, and microorganisms. Stable environments support the welfare of large predators and control opportunistic species. Owls, coyotes, and snakes eat rodents that carry Lyme disease ticks and a variety of viruses, plague, and bacteria. Reptiles, birds, spiders, ladybugs, bats, and fish consume larvae and mosquitoes that cause malaria and fevers. Habitat loss and fragmentation, monocultures, excessive use of toxic chemicals, climate change, and weather instability are widespread global changes that reduce the predator population. Small wilderness habitats favor pests. Monocultures reduce genetic diversity and increase vulnerability. Excessive use of pesticides harms birds and helpful insects. A sign of a failing ecosystem is the population explosion of pests and disequilibrium. The Environmental Distress Syndrome is characterized as: 1) emerging infectious diseases, 2) loss of biodiversity, 3) increased generalist species and decreased specialist species, 4) declines in specific specialists, such as pollinators responsible for preservation of flowering plants, and 5) increased coastal algal blooms. The impacts of disease mean considerable costs to humans, agriculture, and livestock. Loss of resources is also costly.
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PMID:The threatened plague. 1232 Oct 43

The project for the struggle against childhood diseases began in Rwanda in 1984. Lack of birth spacing, malnutrition, unhealthy environments and infectious diseases sicken and kill children in all of Africa, and many may be alleviated by simple measures. The project focuses on diarrhea and malaria, attempting to reduce mortality by 25%, administering chloroquine to children with fever and pregnant mothers for malaria, and oral rehydration therapy (ORT) for diarrhea. Goals are breastfeeding and gradual weaning being as universal as possible, and proper alimentation for sufferers of infant diarrhea. ORT is expected to be administered by the mother herself, and should reduce the 60% to 70% of diarrhea deaths caused by dehydration. Measles, whooping cough, neonatal tetanus, polio, diphtheria, and tuberculosis among children will be the targets of innoculation campaigns. All of the diseases are major child killers in Africa; measles are responsible for an estimated 31.3% of child deaths from 1 to 4, 10.3% in the 1st year of life. Community oriented primary care of the type necessary to execute these programs is not presently a priority among medical personnel; it should become an important component of medical education. Education to counter ignorance and the designation of the family as the primary instrument of good health will assure child survival and eliminate the need for multiple births to maintain the family.
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PMID:[Program to combat communicable diseases in children]. 1234 Mar 78

This document presents an interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci on the development of a new generation of vaccines to prevent and possibly eradicate a legion of deadly diseases ranging from tuberculosis to AIDS. Infections that have caused major devastations in the world today include tuberculosis, malaria, schistosomiasis, filariasis, pneumococcal pneumonia, influenza, AIDS, and Ebola. Agencies should be making sure that the basic research base in microbiology, immunology, antimicrobials, and vaccinology is at the very highest level. The integration of research efforts between countries depends on collaboration between the investigators of home countries with foreign investigators. Among new developments in vaccinology are an acellular pertussis vaccine for pertussis/whooping cough (an extremely contagious disease that causes death), DNA immunization (a new technique applicable to all types of diseases), and transgenic plants for immunization against hepatitis, pertussis, and polio. As of now, AIDS in Western countries has declined, while in Africa and Asia its spread has accelerated. Combination therapy for AIDS has had a profound impact on the level of the virus in the body; however, the treatment is still vague. The good news with regard to AIDS is that education is having an impact; this is exemplified by the situation in Thailand, where the government together with nongovernmental organizations and the military has begun a crash education campaign regarding prostitutes and the use of condoms. Progress is being made in the search for better vaccine candidates. AIDS-like epidemics involving new diseases are bound to emerge at some future point, though, given the long-term historical trend.
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PMID:New drugs, new vaccines, new diseases. An interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). 1234 52

Sterile immunity against malaria can be achieved by the induction of IFNgamma-producing CD8(+) T cells that target infected hepatocytes presenting epitopes of the circumsporozoite protein (CSP). In the present study we evaluate the protective efficacy of a heterologous prime/boost immunization protocol based on the delivery of the CD8(+) epitope of Plasmodium berghei CSP into the MHC class I presentation pathway, by either a type III secretion system of live recombinant Salmonella and/or by direct translocation of a recombinant Bordetella adenylate cyclase toxoid fusion (ACT-CSP) into the cytosol of professional antigen-presenting cells (APCs). A single intraperitoneal application of the recombinant ACT-CSP toxoid, as well as a single oral immunization with the Salmonella vaccine, induced a specific CD8(+) T cell response, which however conferred only a partial protection on mice against a subsequent sporozoite challenge. In contrast, a heterologous prime/boost vaccination with the live Salmonella followed by ACT-CSP led to a significant enhancement of the CSP-specific T cell response and induced complete protection in all vaccinated mice.
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PMID:Complete protection against P. berghei malaria upon heterologous prime/boost immunization against circumsporozoite protein employing Salmonella type III secretion system and Bordetella adenylate cyclase toxoid. 1880 38


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