Skip to main content

Chennai: Malaria vaccine awaits clinical trials


The vaccine created by the team of scientists, which has completed the pre-clinical trial (animal experimenting), will induce an immune response comprising of antibodies.

However, the menace continues to prevail, causing diseases like malaria and dengue.
The vaccine created by the team of scientists, which has completed the pre-clinical trial (animal experimenting), will induce an immune response comprising of antibodies.
 
The vaccine created by the team of scientists, which has completed the pre-clinical trial (animal experimenting), will induce an immune response comprising of antibodies.
Chennai: Fogging and using mosquito coils and nets are only a few among various methods many use to protect themselves from mosquitoes.

However, the menace continues to prevail, causing diseases like malaria and dengue. Therefore, as a means to check malaria transmission, a team of scientists from New Orleans, USA, has invented a vaccine targeting the sexual development of malaria parasites in the mosquito vector.

Vector-borne diseases account for 17 per cent of the estimated global burden of all infectious diseases, according to reports of the World Health Organisation (WHO), and are a major public health problem, particularly in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Some of these diseases are fatal if not treated, while others leave patients disfigured and disabled.

The vaccine created by the team of scientists, which has completed the pre-clinical trial (animal experimenting), will induce an immune response comprising of antibodies. "When a mosquito bites a human being, it will pick up parasites mixed along with the antibodies.

The antibodies will prevent the parasites from further developing," said head of the team, Prof. Nirbhay Kumar, Professor of Tropical Medicine and Director of the Vector Borne Infectious Diseases centre, Tulane University, New Orleans, US, at the sidelines of the 13th conference on vector and vector borne diseases, jointly organized by the National Academy of Vector Borne Diseases, with the Central University of Tamil Nadu.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Isotretinoin in India: A tragedy in the offing

Isotretinoin in India: A tragedy in the offing Wednesday, March 28, 2007 08:00 IST  Seema Thakral Isotretinoin is the drug of choice for severe calcitrant cystic acne vulgaris, which often causes scarring and depression from disfigurement. Isotretinoin has been called "the greatest medical advance of the 1980's." A majority of patients with acne are permanently cleared after a four to five months course of treatment. It has also been used off-label for a variety of oncology uses including: cervical cancer, head and neck cancer, squamous cell cancer of the skin, juvenile chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), and neuroblastoma. However, the drug is a proved teratogen and carries a significant risk of birth defects, if it taken during pregnancy. Birth defects, which have been documented following isotretinoin exposure include abnormalities of the face, eyes, ears, skull, central nervous system, cardiovascular system, and thymus and parathyroid glands. There is an increased ris...

Combination Vaccine for Kids withdrawn

A vaccine that combines conventional MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella) with Chikenpox has been withdrawn in the United States due to a higher rate of seizures in children. In a study children aged 12 to 23 months who received the combined MMR cum Chickenpox vaccine had double the rate of seizures compared to children who got separate vaccine for MMR and chickenpox. This equates to one additional case of convulsion per 2000 vaccinations.

The Influence of TheTourniquet on blood draw

[1] Various methods are used to obtain specimens for hematocrit determination in neonates. We evaluated arterial sampling and found this method to be acceptable. Arterial values correlated closely with simultaneously obtained venous samples. Venous blood obtained with a tourniquet had a significantly higher hematocrit than that obtained without a tourniquet. [2] Influence of tourniquet application on venous blood sampling for serum chemistry, hematological parameters, leukocyte activation and erythrocyte mechanical properties Background: Venous blood sampling is usually performed using a tourniquet to help locate and define peripheral veins to achieve successful and safe venipuncture. Despite widespread usage of tourniquets for venipuncture by medical and laboratory staff, very few are aware of the effects of tourniquet application on laboratory parameters. In addition, definitive guidelines regarding when and how to use a tourniquet for blood sampling are lacking. The aim ...