Analogues of nucleic acid precursors were screened for antimalarial activity in Plasmodium knowlesi by using an in vitro culture system. Activity was assessed by the degree of inhibition of incorporation of l-[methyl-(14)C]methionine into protein and of [8-(14)C]adenosine and [6-(14)C]orotic acid into ribonucleic acid and deoxyribonucleic acid. The incorporation of adenosine or orotic acid was ...

Emergence of drugs resistant strains of Plasmodium falciparum has augmented the scourge of malaria in endemic areas. Antimalaria drugs act on different intracellular targets. The majority of them interfere with digestive vacuoles (DVs) while others affect other organelles, namely, apicoplast and mitochondria. Prevention of drug accumulation or access into the target site is one of the mechanism...

Testosterone induces a lethal outcome in otherwise self-healing blood-stage malaria caused by Plasmodium chabaudi. Here, we examine possible testosterone effects on the antimalaria effectors spleen and liver in female C57BL/6 mice. Self-healing malaria activates gating mechanisms in the spleen and liver that lead to a dramatic reduction in trapping activity, as measured by quantifying the uptak...

Severe malaria, a leading cause of mortality among children and nonimmune adults, is a multisystemic disorder characterized by complex clinical syndromes that are mechanistically poorly understood. The interplay of various parasite and host factors is critical in the pathophysiology of severe malaria. However, knowledge regarding the pathophysiological mechanisms and pathways leading to the mul...

EARLY IN THE 20TH CENTURY, THE State of Minas Gerais in southeastern Brazil was rife with malaria. So severe was the epidemic that it sickened hundreds of railroad workers, threatening government efforts to expand Brazil’s railway system from the mouth of the Amazon River south to Rio de Janeiro. The government needed a malaria mastermind, someone who could halt the spread of disease and help r...

AIM This study was designed to determine the proportion of general out patients who practice self medication, the drugs employed and the reasons for resorting to self medication. METHODOLOGY This study was conducted between June and December, 2007 at the General Outpatient Clinic of the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria. Two hundred consenting respondents were selected by simpl...

The antimalaria effect of iron chelators is attributed to their interaction with a labile iron pool within parasitised erythrocytes, and it was postulated that increased affinity to iron as well as increased lipophilicity may improve antimalarial activity. In the present study we have examined the antimalarial effect of 3-hydroxypyridin-4-ones, a family of bidentate orally effective iron chelat...

Complexation behaviour of mixed complexes of mefloquine hydrochloride and chloroquine phosphate (first-line antimalarial drugs) with Cobalt(II), Nickel(II) and Iron(III) were studied; the complexes were prepared using template methods, and chelates of 1:1:1 stoichiometries were formed. The nature of the bonding of the mixed ligands (mefloquine and chloroquine) and structure of the isolated meta...

Northeastern region of India is in the Indo-Chinese hill zone of Macdonald’s classification of stable malaria. Despite numerous control measures, malaria continues to be major health problem with high morbidity and mortality in the areas of its occurrence even today. Perennial and persistent transmission of malaria is common in this region due to the predominance of Plasmodium falciparuml-3, de...