The enigma of memory B cells in malaria.

Eur J Immunol

Emory Vaccine Center, Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Emory University, Yerkes National Primate Center, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.

Published: December 2012

Malaria is a major public health problem particularly in the tropics. It is caused by protozoan parasites belonging to the genus Plasmodium and is transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes. Currently, strategies to control malaria include vector control measures, chemoprophylaxis, and efficient diagnosis and treatment. The availability of a highly efficacious malaria vaccine would greatly facilitate malaria control and possibly eradicate malaria. Efforts to design such malaria vaccines are underway but are greatly hampered by the poor understanding of how immune memory to malaria is generated and maintained. In this issue of the European Journal of Immunology, Wykes and colleagues [Eur. J. Immunol. 2012. 42: 3291-3301] demonstrate that experimental malaria infection lowers the expression of B-cell-activating factor in DCs, thereby compromising the ability of these DCs to stimulate memory B cells and sustain the survival of Ab-secreting cells. These findings provide potential clues in the quest for better understanding of immunity to malaria as discussed in this Commentary.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/eji.201243056DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

malaria
10
memory cells
8
enigma memory
4
cells malaria
4
malaria malaria
4
malaria major
4
major public
4
public health
4
health problem
4
problem tropics
4

Similar Publications

Background: The blended learning (BL) approach to training health care professionals is increasingly adopted in many countries because of high costs and disruption to service delivery in the light of severe human resource shortage in low resource settings. The Covid-19 pandemic increased the urgency to identify alternatives to traditional face-to-face (f2f) education approach. A four-day f2f antenatal care (ANC) and postnatal care (PNC) continuous professional development course (CPD) was repackaged into a 3-part BL course; (1) self-directed learning (16 h) (2) facilitated virtual sessions (2.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The Highlands of Papua New Guinea are non-endemic for malaria compared to the rest of the country. This study aimed to explore the local transmission of malaria in the Highlands through a cross-sectional school survey coupled with reactive case detection.

Methods: Between July and November 2019, 5575 schoolchildren and 1048 household members were screened for malaria using Rapid Diagnostic Tests, subsequently validated by light microscopy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Heterocyclic compounds are increasingly used in medicinal chemistry because they are the main components of many biological processes and materials. Benzimidazole remains the core center of the heterocyclic chemical group, with essential traits such as six-five-member connected rings and two nitrogen atoms at the 1,3 position in a six-membered benzene and five-membered imidazole- fused ring system. Molecules with benzimidazole derivatives serve important functions as therapeutic agents and have shown excellent results in clinical and biological research.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Predictors of hypocalcemia among children admitted in the Emergency Pediatric Unit of the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, Maiduguri, Nigeria.

Saudi Med J

January 2025

From the Department of Pediatrics (Imam, Musa), University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital; from the Department of Pediatrics (Elechi, Rabasa), College of Medical Sciences, University of Maiduguri, Maiduguri; and from the Department of Pediatrics (Bakari), College of Medical Sciences, Modibo Adama University, Yola, Nigeria.

Objectives: To determine the prevalence and pattern of hypoglycemia among children admitted to the Emergency Pediatric Unit (EPU) at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, Maiduguri, Nigeria.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between February and September 2020. Blood glucose, along with other relevant laboratory investigations, was measured for each patient upon admission to the EPU using a point-of-care test glucometer (ACCU-CHEK with strips).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A Systematic Review of Aspilia africana (Pers.) C.D. Adams Traditional Medicinal Uses, Phytoconstituents, Bioactivities, and Toxicities.

Pharmacol Res

January 2025

Korean Convergence Medical Science Major, Korea National University of Science and Technology (UST), Daejeon, 34113, South Korea; Herbal Medicine Resources Research Center, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine (KIOM), 111 Geonjae-Ro, Naju-Si, South Korea. Electronic address:

Aspilia africana (Pers.) C. D.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!