Evaluation of <em>Plasmodium vivax</em> genotyping markers for molecular monitoring in clinical trials (Publications)
BACKGROUND: Many antimalarial interventions are accompanied by molecular monitoring of parasite infections, and a number of molecular typing techniques based on different polymorphic marker genes are used [...] reached 6% (MS16) or 13% (Pv3.27). To reduce the theoretical probability of superinfection with parasites that have the same haplotype as that detected at baseline, we propose to combine at least 2 markers
Associations of peak shifts in age-prevalence for human malarias with bednet coverage (Publications)
between the recent EIR and the parasite positivity for P. vivax. It is concluded that short-term variations in inoculation rate are not important determinants of parasite prevalence in this population.
Micro-scale investigation of intestinal schistosomiasis transmission on Ngamba and Kimi islands, Lake Victoria, Uganda (Publications)
further research should also include surveys of terminal host parasite burden, as these will affect even micro-scale dynamics of parasite-intermediate host interactions, as well as be important from a
Novel 3-nitro-1H-1,2,4-triazole-based compounds as potential anti-Chagasic drugs: <em>in vivo</em> studies (Publications)
Background: Chagas disease is caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, is endemic in Latin America and leads to an estimated 14,000 deaths per year and around 100 million people at risk of infection. [...] compounds of different chemical classes were included. A fast luminescence assay with transgenic parasites that express luciferase, and live imaging techniques were used. A total of 11 out of 13 compounds
Genomic distribution and functional characterisation of two distinct and conserved <em>Plasmodium falciparum</em> var gene 5' flanking sequences (Publications)
Approximately 50 highly diverse var genes distributed throughout the haploid genome of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum code for PfEMP1 variants located on the surface of infected erythrocytes. [...] flanked by either type of 5' upstream sequence are transcribed in in vitro cultured trophozoite stage parasites. In addition, we have shown that the 5' flanking sequences of four different var genes are able
Effect of combined treatment with praziquantel and artemether on <em>Schistosoma japonicum </em>and<em> Schistosoma mansoni</em> in experimentally... (Publications)
safe and efficacious antischistosomal drugs that act against different developmental stages of the parasite: praziquantel against adult worms and artemether against schistosomula. A combined treatment has [...] control. Recent laboratory experiments with rabbits with a mixed infection of Schistosoma japonicum parasites of different ages confirmed the effectiveness of a combination therapy. In the present work, we
<em>Trypanosoma brucei brucei</em>: a model for cerebral trypanosomiasis in mice--an immunological, histological and electronmicroscopic study (Publications)
binding activity as well as a decrease of C3 levels. Electronmicroscopic studies showed that the parasites were flagellated and localized extracellularly mainly in the interstitium of the choroid plexus [...] After treatment with ethidium bromide, trypanosomes persisted in the tissues when circulating parasites could no longer be detected. These observations suggest a sequential involvement of brain structures
The genome of the heartworm, <em>Dirofilaria immitis</em>, reveals drug and vaccine targets (Publications)
The heartworm Dirofilaria immitis is an important parasite of dogs. Transmitted by mosquitoes in warmer climatic zones, it is spreading across southern Europe and the Americas at an alarming pace. There [...] There is no vaccine, and chemotherapy is prone to complications. To learn more about this parasite, we have sequenced the genomes of D. immitis and its endosymbiont Wolbachia. We predict 10,179 protein coding
A Trk/HKT-type K+ transporter from <em>Trypanosoma brucei</em> (Publications)
molecular mechanisms of K(+) homeostasis are only poorly understood for protozoan parasites. Trypanosoma brucei subsp. parasites, the causative agents of human sleeping sickness and nagana, are strictly ex
Prospective risk of morbidity in relation to multiplicity of infection with <em>Plasmodium falciparum </em>in Sao Tomé (Publications)
children aged 5-10 years. PCR-RFLP typing of the msp-2 gene of P. falciparum found a mean of 2.4 parasite genotypes per infected person, with little age dependence in this multiplicity and a total of 43 [...] consistent with suggestions that multiple P. falciparum infections may protect against super-infecting parasites, confounding by patterns of health service usage is an alternative explanation. The incidence of
