Comparison of cellular and humoral responses to recombinant protein and synthetic peptides of exon2 region of Plasmodium falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein1 (PfEMP1) among malaria patients from an endemic region

Antibody and cellular immune responses to Plasmodium falciparum histidine-rich protein II in malaria-exposed individuals in Orissa, India

The precise function of Plasmodium falciparum histidine-rich protein II (HRPII) is not known, but in vitro studies have indicated its immunomodulatory function. The host immune response to HRPII was measured and compared with the response to P. falciparum merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP1) in four groups of study subjects (healthy malaria-naïve adults, uncomplicated malaria patients, asymptomatic parasite carriers and aparasitemic endemic adults; n=15 in each group). Serum antibody concentrations, lymphocyte proliferation and IFN-( and IL-4 responses were significantly higher with MSP1 than with HRPII stimulation in all three malaria-exposed groups (P<0.001), suggesting a strong immunomodulatory role for HRPII.

Molecular approaches to field studies of malaria

The third 'Molecular Approaches to Malaria' conference was held in Lorne, Australia, in February 2008 and provided extensive information on the application of molecular tools in field studies on malaria. In recent years, technological advances and capacity building in malaria-endemic countries have permitted molecular tools to be applied much more frequently and successfully with exciting new findings. In this review, Hans-Peter Beck and Kevin Tetteh report on the most recent findings using molecular tools in field studies.