Publications by authors named "Nanzheng Peng"

T lymphocytes play a vital role in antimalaria immunity, but there is little information about the role of T cells in malaria infection. In order to explore the profile of T cells in malaria immunity, we infected Chinese rhesus macaques with the malaria parasite (Plasmodium cynomolgi) and examined the dynamics of T cell subsets. Both repeated and long-term infections were involved.

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The antimalarial activity of the human immunodeficiency virus protease inhibitors indinavir and saquinavir was evaluated in rhesus macaques for the first time. Indinavir effectively suppressed the growth of Plasmodium cynomolgi and Plasmodium knowlesi in vivo after a 7- or 3-day treatment, respectively, with clinically relevant doses, whereas saquinavir showed only weak activity against P. cynomolgi.

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Malaria and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection overlap in many regions of the world. Our goal was to determine the feasibility of developing transgenic Plasmodium berghei that expresses HIV-1 Gag, PbGAG, as a conceptual bivalent vaccine against both HIV-1 infection and malaria. Immunization of mice with PbGAG induced specific responses to the HIV-1 Gag.

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Signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) proteins play an important role in cytokine signaling pathways and regulation of immune responses. The balance of the phosphorylated (activated) STAT1 (pSTAT1) and STAT3 (pSTAT3) has been documented in cancer immunology. In this study, we investigated the dynamic balance of pSTAT1 and pSTAT3 in C57BL/6 mice infected with either a nonlethal (Py17XNL) or lethal (Py17XL) strain of Plasmodium yoelii.

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The synergy of the activities between chloroquine and various human immunodeficiency virus protease inhibitors was investigated in chloroquine-resistant and -sensitive malaria parasites. In both in vitro and in vivo assay systems, ritonavir was found to be the most potent in potentiating the antimalarial action of chloroquine.

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