A single protein helps malaria parasites develop in the blood and cause disease symptoms. Could inhibiting this essential protein help curb the spread of disease?

With Abhishek Kanyal and Krishanpal Karmodiya.

The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.

A poorly studied malaria protein could serve as a key drug target to help combat the growing problem of resistance.

Transcript

A poorly studied malaria protein – Plasmodium falciparum histone deacetylase 1 – could serve as a key drug target to help combat the growing problem of resistance. The protein helps regulate the ‘intraerythrocytic’ stage of the parasite: a 48-hour cycle in which the parasite invades, replicates, and bursts free from red blood cells, causing disease symptoms. By making this protein fluorescent, researchers found that it is associated with a range of major biological functions that help the parasite progress through this stage, particularly during the ‘trophozoite’ (or mature) stage. When PfHDAC1 was overexpressed, the number of malaria parasites increased – along with the expression of other genes responsible for parasite development. Dihydroartemisinin—a key antimalarial drug—ordinarily interferes with these biological processes, but overexpression of the protein leads to reduced sensitivity and resistance. This research reveals more about the parasite lifecycle in the human body and suggests a new drug target against it.

Source

PfHDAC1 is an essential regulator of P. falciparum asexual proliferation and host cell invasion genes with a dynamic genomic occupancy responsive to artemisinin stress

About The Podcast

The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute podcast is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.

How sickle cell disease can be a blessing and a curse. And why we need equity in genomic research and to diversify the genomes we sequence.

With Ambroise Wonkam (Johns Hopkins University).

The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.

Malaria is one of humanity’s oldest diseases – and one with which we have evolved.

Transcript

Malaria is one of humanity’s oldest diseases – and one with which we have evolved. Over time, it’s put selective pressure on our genome to respond better to its infection. Sickle cell disease is one example. It causes a defect in hemoglobin – transforming red blood cells into a banana or sickle shape – reducing the amount of oxygen transported to the body’s cells. The mutation has been around for more than 20,000 years – and is thought to originate near present-day Cameroon. But in one of the many evolutionary twists, under the right conditions, sickle cell disease can protect humans from malaria, because it makes it harder for malaria parasites to infect red blood cells. Possessing one copy is an asset, providing resistance to severe malaria, but if two copies of the mutation appear, it is a liability, leading to premature death. The evolutionary relationship between malaria endemicity and sickle cell disease is evident geographically. This complex, genetic legacy is the focus of an upcoming talk by Ambroise Wonkam at the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute’s World Malaria Day symposium on April 25th.

Source

Evolutionary history of sickle-cell mutation: implications for global genetic medicine

About The Podcast

The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute podcast is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.

On the steps of Capitol Hill, we meet the scientists bringing their scientific battle against malaria into the world of political advocacy. They join a 100+ group of advocates lobbying their members of Congress to fund critical interventions against malaria – becoming ‘malaria champions’ as well.

We ask:

• Why have they decided to join the world of political advocacy?

• How are they using their expertise to strengthen the champion’s efforts?

• What scientific message do they have to share?

With David Sullivan (Johns Hopkins University), Tracey Lamb and Jenna Reed (University of Utah) and Louisa Messenger (University of Las Nevas Nevada)

The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.

Malaria champions from 43 states gather in Washington D.C. to lobby their members of Congress about malaria.

Transcript

The malaria community is diverse. Some work on the parasites, others the mosquito. Others still focus on public health. The battle is being waged on the bench and the field. But there's another community fighting the disease on a different frontline: in the corridors and offices of Capitol Hill. This week, ‘malaria champions’ from 43 states gather in Washington DC for the annual ‘United to Beat Malaria’ conference. And this year, there’s a focus on how critical scientific research is to the fight. JHMRI’s David Sullivan reiterated that sound policy must be based on sound science. By communicating the science, scientists can help explain the significance of malaria and define policy problems – and solutions – more clearly. Because, despite reductions in cases and deaths, significant, interconnected challenges remain, including drug and insecticide resistance, the need to strengthen health systems, and the looming threat of climate change. With the United States government being the largest government donor to malaria efforts, the champions hope that by persuading their representatives to continue the fight, they can be part of the solution.

Source

United to Beat Malaria 2023 Year in Review

About The Podcast

The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute podcast is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.

Until recently, health workers were the only means to prevent and treat malaria in Odisha, India. In 2017, the state government tried a new strategy: pooling health resources into regional ‘malaria camps’.

In this podcast, we ask:

• What is the current state of malaria in Odisha, India?
• What challenges does Odisha face in malaria control, especially in hard-to-reach areas?
• What inspired the Odisha government to introduce the concept of malaria camps?
• What makes this approach encouraging and potentially translatable to regions with higher malaria endemicity, such as Africa?

With Praveen Sahu, Senior Researcher in Molecular Biology and Infectious Diseases, and Jane Carlton, Director of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute. and Jane Carlton.

The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.

Malaria in India has fallen in recent decades — but the risk is still high among hard-to-reach communities. A new study has evaluated the system of ‘malaria camps’ — in which health workers provide targeted interventions before the monsoon.

Transcript

Malaria in India has diminished in past decades — yet the risk is still high among hard-to-reach communities in forested areas that are isolated particularly during the monsoon season. To control the disease in these areas, the government has started a system of ‘malaria camps’, where health workers come to the villages to deliver key interventions, like mass screening and treatment, combined with education, intensified vector control, and maternal and child health visits. A new study has examined the effectiveness of these camps. In 15 villages in the state of Odisha nearly twenty-five hundred people were split into three arms, all receiving the malaria camps at different points. Tests were conducted at baseline and three follow-ups. The first group of villages received the malaria camps for the first time at the baseline visit and subsequently for the duration of the study. The second received the malaria camps for the first time after one year of routine malaria control strategies. The third group of villages was considered a control that had already received malaria camps before the study commenced. There was a statistically significant reduction in malaria parasite infection in study participants overall and for Arm A – the experimental group that received the intervention the longest. The researchers argue that this lower incidence – and the financial feasibility of the program – make malaria camps a promising tool for malaria control in remote areas of Odisha State – in pursuit of India’s goal of malaria elimination by 2030.

Source

The effectiveness of malaria camps as part of the malaria control program in Odisha, India

About The Podcast

The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute podcast is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.