PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

New malaria tool shows which kids at greatest risk

2013-05-09
(Press-News.org) Researchers at Michigan State University have identified a test that can determine which children with malaria are likely to develop cerebral malaria, a much more life-threatening form of the disease.

The screening tool could be a game-changer in resource-limited rural health clinics where workers see hundreds of children with malaria each day and must decide which patients can be sent home with oral drugs and which need to be taken to hospitals for more comprehensive care.

"Rural health workers have to make these decisions with very little objective data, and the consequences of an inappropriate decision are huge," said Karl Seydel, MSU assistant professor of osteopathic medical specialties. "Children who progress to cerebral malaria have a 20 percent mortality rate, or even higher if they don't get the right treatment early in the disease process."

In a new study in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, Seydel and colleagues report that testing patients' blood for HRP2 -- a protein produced by the malaria parasite – was an accurate predictor of how the disease progressed among children at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi.

"We found that if HRP2 levels are low, clinicians can be more than 98 percent sure the child will not progress to cerebral malaria," Seydel said. "That would give them the confidence to merely prescribe oral drugs and send the child home."

Nowhere is the need for such a tool greater than in Africa, where 90 percent of childhood malaria deaths occur. Only about 1 percent of children with malaria develop the life-threatening form of the disease, yet an estimated 1 million African children die from it each year.

"In most of Africa, where resources are still so limited, using those available resources appropriately and intelligently is of great importance," Seydel said.

The HRP2 test in its current form is costly and poorly suited to use in rural clinics, Seydel noted. He and colleagues are in the process of developing a less expensive, more portable version.

Seydel's collaborators on the study include MSU researchers Lindsay Fox, Terrie Taylor and Mathew Reeves, along with partners from the University of Malawi College of Medicine.



INFORMATION:

The National Institutes of Health supported the research.

Michigan State University has been working to advance the common good in uncommon ways for more than 150 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU focuses its vast resources on creating solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges, while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Dietary flexibility may have helped some large predators survive after last ice age

2013-05-09
During the late Pleistocene, a remarkably diverse assemblage of large-bodied mammals inhabited the "mammoth steppe," a cold and dry yet productive environment that extended from western Europe through northern Asia and across the Bering land bridge to the Yukon. Of the large predators--wolves, bears, and big cats--only the wolves and bears were able to maintain their ranges well after the end of the last ice age. A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, suggests that dietary flexibility may have been an important factor giving wolves ...

Spintronics discovery

2013-05-09
From powerful computers to super-sensitive medical and environmental detectors that are faster, smaller and use less energy — yes, we want them, but how do we get them? In research that is helping to lay the groundwork for the electronics of the future, University of Delaware scientists have confirmed the presence of a magnetic field generated by electrons which scientists had theorized existed, but that had never been proven until now. The finding, which is reported in the journal Nature Communications, expands the potential for harnessing the "spin" or magnetic properties ...

Exotic atoms hold clues to unsolved physics puzzle at the dawn of the universe

2013-05-09
ANN ARBOR---An international team of physicists has found the first direct evidence of pear shaped nuclei in exotic atoms. The findings could advance the search for a new fundamental force in nature that could explain why the Big Bang created more matter than antimatter---a pivotal imbalance in the history of everything. "If equal amounts of matter and antimatter were created at the Big Bang, everything would have annihilated, and there would be no galaxies, stars, planets or people," said Tim Chupp, a University of Michigan professor of physics and biomedical engineering ...

George Washington University biologist maps the family tree of all known snake and lizard groups

2013-05-09
WASHINGTON- A George Washington University biologist and a team of researchers have created the first large-scale evolutionary family tree for every snake and lizard around the globe. The findings were recently published in the journal BMC Evolutionary Biology. Alex Pyron, the Robert F. Griggs Assistant Professor of Biology in GW's Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, along with researchers from the City University of New York and Arizona State University, detail the cataloguing of 4,161 species of snakes and lizards, or squamates. "Squamates include all lizards ...

Many plastic surgeons view social media as important tool for promoting their practice

2013-05-09
Social media has revolutionized the way in which people and businesses interact, and it is taking on a growing role in the health care industry. A new UCLA study looking at the use of social media among plastic surgeons found that roughly half of these specialists use social media tools. Plastic surgeons have been leaders among medical specialists in the development of interactive websites to promote their practices and educate patients, said the study's principal investigator and senior author, Dr. Reza Jarrahy, an associate clinical professor of plastic and reconstructive ...

Study finds PCB concentrations same in urban and rural areas

2013-05-09
Since polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are produced through industrial processes or activities, it is assumed that people living in industrial cities will have higher concentrations of these toxic chemicals in their blood than people in rural communities. Researchers at the University of Iowa say this isn't the case. In a paper published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, scientists report that mothers and children in East Chicago, Ind., and Columbus Junction, Iowa, had only subtle differences in their PCB blood levels. This analytical paper is the first ...

Could eating peppers prevent Parkinson's?

2013-05-09
New research reveals that Solanaceae—a flowering plant family with some species producing foods that are edible sources of nicotine—may provide a protective effect against Parkinson's disease. The study appearing today in Annals of Neurology, a journal of the American Neurological Association and Child Neurology Society, suggests that eating foods that contain even a small amount of nicotine, such as peppers and tomatoes, may reduce risk of developing Parkinson's. Parkinson's disease is a movement disorder caused by a loss of brain cells that produce dopamine. Symptoms ...

Geologists study mystery of 'eternal flames'

2013-05-09
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- "Eternal flames" fueled by hydrocarbon gas could shine a light on the presence of natural gas in underground rock layers and conditions that let it seep to the surface, according to research by geologists at the Department of Geological Sciences and the Indiana Geological Survey at Indiana University Bloomington. A little-known but spectacular flame in Erie County, N.Y., is the focus of an article in the journal Marine and Petroleum Geology, co-authored by Agnieszka Drobniak, research scientist with the Indiana Geological Survey, and Arndt Schimmelmann, ...

U-M's Yamashita named Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator

2013-05-09
ANN ARBOR—Yukiko Yamashita of the University of Michigan's Life Sciences Institute is one of 27 biomedical researchers named today as Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigators. HHMI provides flexible support on renewable five-year appointments to allow scientists to move their research in creative new directions. This year, 1,155 applicants applied to be investigators. Those selected represent 19 institutions from across the United States. Yamashita joins five other current U-M faculty members—including one from LSI—on the list of HHMI investigators. A central question ...

Exempt property in a Texas bankruptcy

2013-05-09
Exempt property in a Texas bankruptcy Article provided by Lee Norton Bain, Attorney at Law Visit us at http://www.leebainlaw.com/ Many people believe that if they file for bankruptcy protection, they will be required to give up all of their possessions; however, that is generally not the case. Bankruptcy protection is designed to assist those with financial issues and give them a new beginning without having to stress over insurmountable debt. Accordingly, individuals who have been contemplating filing for bankruptcy protection should continue to do so, keeping ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Premenstrual symptoms linked to increased risk of cardiovascular disease

Newly discovered remains of ancient river landscapes control ice flow in East Antarctica

Newly discovered interstellar object 'may be oldest comet ever seen'

Animal-inspired AI robot learns to navigate unfamiliar terrain

Underserved youth less likely to visit emergency department for concussion in Ontario, study finds

‘Molecular shield’ placed in the nose may soon treat common hay fever trigger

Beetles under climate stress lay larger male eggs: Wolbachia infection drives adaptive reproduction strategy in response to rising temperature and CO₂

Groundbreaking quantum study puts wave-particle duality to work

Weekly injection could be life changing for Parkinson’s patients

Toxic metals linked to impaired growth in infants in Guatemala

Being consistently physically active in adulthood linked to 30–40% lower risk of death

Nerve pain drug gabapentin linked to increased dementia, cognitive impairment risks

Children’s social care involvement common to nearly third of UK mums who died during perinatal period

‘Support, not judgement’: Study explores links between children’s social care involvement and maternal deaths

Ethnic minority and poorer children more likely to die in intensive care

Major progress in fertility preservation after treatment for cancer of the lymphatic system

Fewer complications after additional ultrasound in pregnant women who feel less fetal movement

Environmental impact of common pesticides seriously underestimated

The Milky Way could be teeming with more satellite galaxies than previously thought

New study reveals surprising reproductive secrets of a cricket-hunting parasitoid fly

Media Tip Sheet: Symposia at ESA2025

NSF CAREER Award will power UVA engineer’s research to improve drug purification

Tiny parasitoid flies show how early-life competition shapes adult success

New coating for glass promises energy-saving windows

Green spaces boost children’s cognitive skills and strengthen family well-being

Ancient trees dying faster than expected in Eastern Oregon

Study findings help hone precision of proven CVD risk tool

Most patients with advanced melanoma who received pre-surgical immunotherapy remain alive and disease free four years later

Introducing BioEmu: A generative AI Model that enables high-speed and accurate prediction of protein structural ensembles

Replacing mutated microglia with healthy microglia halts progression of genetic neurological disease in mice and humans

[Press-News.org] New malaria tool shows which kids at greatest risk