Isoprenoid biosynthesis in Plasmodium falciparum.

Malaria kills nearly 1 million people each year, and the protozoan parasite Plasmodium falciparum has become increasingly resistant to current therapies. Isoprenoid synthesis via the methylerythritol phosphate (MEP) pathway represents an attractive target for the development of new antimalarials. The phosphonic acid antibiotic fosmidomycin is a specific inhibitor of isoprenoid synthesis and has been a helpful tool to outline the essential functions of isoprenoid biosynthesis in P.

Evaluation of the routine use of amoxicillin as part of the home-based treatment of severe acute malnutrition.

Objective: To determine whether the inclusion of amoxicillin correlates with better recovery rates in the home-based treatment of severe acute malnutrition with ready-to-use therapeutic food.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study compared data from the treatment of two groups of children in Malawi aged 6-59 months with uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition. The standard protocol group received a 7-day course of amoxicillin at the onset of treatment.

Consuming cassava as a staple food places children 2-5 years old at risk for inadequate protein intake, an observational study in Kenya and Nigeria.

Background: Inadequate protein intake is known to be deleterious in animals. Using WHO consensus documents for human nutrient requirements, the protein:energy ratio (P:E) of an adequate diet is > 5%. Cassava has a very low protein content.

Children consuming cassava as a staple food are at risk for inadequate zinc, iron, and vitamin A intake.

Cassava contains little zinc, iron, and beta-carotene, yet it is the primary staple crop of over 250 million Africans. This study used a 24-hour dietary recall to test the hypothesis that among healthy children aged 2-5 years in Nigeria and Kenya, cassava's contribution to the childrens' daily diets is inversely related to intakes of zinc, iron, and vitamin A. Dietary and demographic data and anthropometric measurements were collected from 449 Kenyan and 793 Nigerian children.

The use of home-based therapy with ready-to-use therapeutic food to treat malnutrition in a rural area during a food crisis.

When the international community declared a famine in Malawi in January of 2006, emergency food aid reached only populations with pre-existing health care services. To treat the widespread childhood malnutrition in Machinga district, a rural area lacking health care facilities, in February 2006 five outpatient therapeutic programs were implemented that utilized home-based therapy and ready-to-use therapeutic food. Children with severe malnutrition, defined as the presence of edema and/or a weight-for-height less than 70% of the reference standard, were enrolled in the program.