Author: ulick

Two research studies on novel bug hunting were reported this week. Large scale larviciding in Tanga region was reported in MalariaWorld. And genetically modified mosquitos developed in Tanzania were reported by ‘The Multilateral Initiative on Malaria Society’ on LinkedIn. ‘A large-scale mosquito larviciding in Tanga Region, Tanzania, reduced mosquito densities to varying degrees across malaria […]

NTV Uganda reports that health workers are concerned about low uptake of malaria vaccine (reported in MalariaWorld).  In the report, available on YouTube, Dr Myers Lugemwa, head of the Malaria Control Programme at the Health Ministry, attributes the low turnout for the vaccine to a lack of public awareness. Dr Lugemwa reported that when launched […]

The hype about Artificial Intelligence (AI) is everywhere, so it is no surprise that AI is referenced with respect to malaria research. In MalariaWorld this week there is a link to a blog post ‘Can AI Democratize the Global Fight Against Malaria?’ in Health Policy Watch. The post is a conversation with Jeremy Burrows, Medicines […]

One of the most profound statements I know is by Science Fiction writer, Philip K Dick, best known for Bladerunner. In his 1978 essay ‘How to Build a Universe That Doesn’t Fall  Apart Two Days Later’ Dick said “One day a girl college student in Canada asked me to define reality for her, for a […]

The lead news story in MalariaWorld this week is that gut bacteria are associated with life-threatening complications in African children with severe malaria. The referenced article ‘Gut bacterial dysbiosis in pediatric severe malaria associates with post-discharge mortality’ by Bednarski et al was published in Nature Communications. In the study analysis of gut bacteria in stool […]

An article on LinkedIn from Trevor Mundel, President of Global Health at Gates Foundation announced phase III trial for ganaplacide-lumefantrine (GanLum), a new non-artemisinin malaria treatment being developed by Swiss Pharma Giant, Novartis. The posting linked to web post from NPR. ‘New malaria drug could be a life-saver as the standard drug shows signs of […]

In MalariaWorld this week a study from Madagascar examines early bio-efficacy loss of ITNs. In ‘Early Bio-Efficacy Loss of Nets Mass Distributed for Malaria Vector Control in Madagascar in 2018: Implications for Malaria Prevention’, Nepomichene et al assess the bio-efficacy of DawaPlus® 2.0 and PermaNet® 2.0 ITNs upon arrival and at 12, 24, and 36 […]

A case-control study in MalariaWorld this week found association between malaria and undernutrition. ‘Associations between undernutrition and malaria infection: a case–control study from Rwanda’ by Uwimana et al found significant association between malaria and vitamin E and iron deficiency. There was a significant association in the occurrence of malaria with sub-optimal lipid consumption. The case […]

A study listed in MalariaWorld this week found that adherence to a ‘fat and vitamin A’ dietary pattern was inversely associated with the chance of clinical malaria. ‘Associations Between Climate- Sensitive Nutrients, Clinical Malaria, and Anaemia Among Young Children in Rural Burkina Faso: An Analysis of Baseline Data From a Cluster- Randomised Controlled Trial’ by […]

The lead article in MalariaWorld this week is ‘Rapid diagnostics test can detect asymptomatic malaria cases’ by Patel and Duncan of Imperial College, London. The article claims that the new test called Dragonfly is so sensitive it can detect 95% of cases where the numbers of parasites were too low to be detected by looking […]