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Bursali F, Touray M. The complexities of blood-feeding patterns in mosquitoes and sandflies and the burden of disease: A minireview. Vet Med Sci 2024; 10:e1580. [PMID: 39171609 PMCID: PMC11339650 DOI: 10.1002/vms3.1580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2024] [Accepted: 07/26/2024] [Indexed: 08/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Mosquitoes and sandflies exhibit a wide range of blood feeding patterns, targeting a wide range of vertebrate species, including birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians, for proteins vital for egg development. This broad host range increases the opportunity for them to acquire pathogens of numerous debilitating-and-fatal diseases from various animal reservoirs, playing a significant role in disease crossover between animals and humans, also known as zoonotic transmission. This review focuses on the intricate blood-feeding habits of these dipteran vectors, their sensory systems and the complex dance between host and pathogen during disease transmission. We delve into the influence of blood sources on pathogen spread by examining the insect immune response and its intricate interplay with pathogens. The remarkable sense of smell guiding them towards food sources and hosts is explored, highlighting the interplay of multiple sensory cues in their navigation. Finally, we examine the challenges in mosquito control strategies and explore innovations in this field, emphasizing the need for sustainable solutions to combat this global health threat. By understanding the biology and behaviour of these insects, we can develop more effective strategies to protect ourselves and mitigate the burden of vector-borne diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fatma Bursali
- Biology Department, Faculty of ScienceAydin Adnan Menderes UniversityAydinTürkiye
| | - Mustapha Touray
- Biology Department, Faculty of ScienceAydin Adnan Menderes UniversityAydinTürkiye
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2
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Agrawal K, Prabhakar S, Bakthavachalu B, Chaturvedi D. Distinct developmental patterns in Anopheles stephensi organ systems. Dev Biol 2024; 508:107-122. [PMID: 38272285 PMCID: PMC7615899 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2024.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Revised: 01/01/2024] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024]
Abstract
Anatomical profiles of insects inform vector biology, comparative development and evolutionary studies with applications in forensics, agriculture and disease control. This study presents a comprehensive, high-resolution developmental profile of Anopheles stephensi, encompassing larval, pupal, and adult stages, obtained through microCT scanning. The results indicate in situ anatomical changes in most organ systems, including the central nervous system, eyes, musculature, alimentary canal, salivary glands, and ovaries, among other organ systems, except for the developing heart. We find significant differences in the mosquito gut, body-wall, and flight muscle development during metamorphosis from other dipterans like Drosophila. Specifically, indirect flight muscle specification and growth can be traced back at least to the 4th instar A. stephensi larvae, as opposed to post-puparial development in other Dipterans like Drosophila and Calliphora. Further, while Drosophila larval body-wall muscles and gut undergo histolysis, changes to these organs during mosquito metamorphosis are less pronounced. These observations, and raw data therein may serve as a reference for studies on the development and the genetics of mosquitoes. Overall, the detailed developmental profile of A. stephensi presented here illuminates the unique anatomy and developmental processes of Culicidae, with important implications for vector biology, disease control, and comparative evolutionary studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Khushboo Agrawal
- Tata Institute for Genetics and Society Centre at inStem, Bellary Road, Bangalore, 560065, India; School of Biotechnology, Amrita University, Kollam, 690525, Kerala, India
| | - Sunil Prabhakar
- Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms, Bellary Road, Bangalore, 560065, India
| | - Baskar Bakthavachalu
- Tata Institute for Genetics and Society Centre at inStem, Bellary Road, Bangalore, 560065, India; School of Basic Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi, 175005, India.
| | - Dhananjay Chaturvedi
- National Centre for Biological Sciences, TIFR, Bangalore, 560065, India; CSIR - Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, 500007, India.
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3
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Pang W, Bai J, Zhu L, Liu F, Wu Y, Yang F, Zheng L, Liu P, Zhang Y, Wang M, Li J, Zhu X, Cui L, Cao Y. Functional characterization of a conserved membrane protein, Pbs54, involved in gamete fertilization in Plasmodium berghei. Int J Parasitol 2024; 54:99-107. [PMID: 37774810 PMCID: PMC11283859 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2023.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2023] [Accepted: 08/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/01/2023]
Abstract
The successful completion of gamete fertilization is essential for malaria parasite transmission, and this process can be targeted by intervention strategies. In this study, we identified a conserved gene (PBANKA_0813300) in the rodent malaria parasite Plasmodium berghei, which encodes a protein of 54 kDa (designated as Pbs54). Localization studies indicated that Pbs54 is associated with the plasma membranes of gametes and ookinetes. Functional studies by gene disruption showed that the Δpbs54 parasites had no defect in asexual proliferation, gametocyte development, or gametogenesis. However, the interactions between male and female gametes were significantly decreased compared with wild-type parasites. The Δpbs54 lines did not show a further reduction in zygote and ookinete numbers during in vitro culture, indicating that the defects were probably restricted to gamete fertilization. Consistent with this finding, mosquitoes fed on Δpbs54-infected mice showed a 30.1% reduction in infection prevalence and a 74.7% reduction in oocyst intensity. Cross-fertilization assay indicated that both male and female gametes were impaired in the Δpbs54 parasites. To evaluate its transmission-blocking potential, we obtained polyclonal antibodies from mice immunized with the recombinant Pbs54 (rPbs54) protein. In vitro assays showed that anti-rPbs54 sera inhibited ookinete formation by 42.7%. Our experiments identified Pbs54 as a fertility factor required for mosquito transmission and a novel candidate for a malaria transmission-blocking vaccine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Pang
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Jie Bai
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Liying Zhu
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Fei Liu
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Yudi Wu
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Fan Yang
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Li Zheng
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Pengbo Liu
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Yaowen Zhang
- Department of Pathogen Biology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Meilian Wang
- Department of Pathogen Biology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China
| | - Jun Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Xiaotong Zhu
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
| | - Liwang Cui
- Department of Internal Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA.
| | - Yaming Cao
- Department of Immunology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
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Parres-Mercader M, Pance A, Gómez-Díaz E. Novel systems to study vector-pathogen interactions in malaria. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2023; 13:1146030. [PMID: 37305421 PMCID: PMC10253182 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2023.1146030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 06/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Some parasitic diseases, such as malaria, require two hosts to complete their lifecycle: a human and an insect vector. Although most malaria research has focused on parasite development in the human host, the life cycle within the vector is critical for the propagation of the disease. The mosquito stage of the Plasmodium lifecycle represents a major demographic bottleneck, crucial for transmission blocking strategies. Furthermore, it is in the vector, where sexual recombination occurs generating "de novo" genetic diversity, which can favor the spread of drug resistance and hinder effective vaccine development. However, understanding of vector-parasite interactions is hampered by the lack of experimental systems that mimic the natural environment while allowing to control and standardize the complexity of the interactions. The breakthrough in stem cell technologies has provided new insights into human-pathogen interactions, but these advances have not been translated into insect models. Here, we review in vivo and in vitro systems that have been used so far to study malaria in the mosquito. We also highlight the relevance of single-cell technologies to progress understanding of these interactions with higher resolution and depth. Finally, we emphasize the necessity to develop robust and accessible ex vivo systems (tissues and organs) to enable investigation of the molecular mechanisms of parasite-vector interactions providing new targets for malaria control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Parres-Mercader
- Instituto de Parasitología y Biomedicina López-Neyra, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (IPBLN, CSIC), Granada, Spain
| | - Alena Pance
- School of Life and Medical Sciences, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, United Kingdom
| | - Elena Gómez-Díaz
- Instituto de Parasitología y Biomedicina López-Neyra, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (IPBLN, CSIC), Granada, Spain
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Ezema CA, Okagu IU, Ezeorba TPC. Escaping the enemy's bullets: an update on how malaria parasites evade host immune response. Parasitol Res 2023:10.1007/s00436-023-07868-6. [PMID: 37219610 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-023-07868-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Malaria continues to cause untold hardship to inhabitants of malaria-endemic regions, causing significant morbidity and mortality that severely impact global health and the economy. Considering the complex life cycle of malaria parasites (MPs) and malaria biology, continued research efforts are ongoing to improve our understanding of the pathogenesis of the diseases. Female Anopheles mosquito injects MPs into its hosts during a blood meal, and MPs invade the host skin and the hepatocytes without causing any serious symptoms. Symptomatic infections occur only during the erythrocytic stage. In most cases, the host's innate immunity (for malaria-naïve individuals) and adaptive immunity (for pre-exposed individuals) mount severe attacks and destroy most MPs. It is increasingly understood that MPs have developed several mechanisms to escape from the host's immune destruction. This review presents recent knowledge on how the host's immune system destroys invading MPs as well as MPs survival or host immune evasion mechanisms. On the invasion of host cells, MPs release molecules that bind to cell surface receptors to reprogram the host in a way to lose the capacity to destroy them. MPs also hide from the host immune cells by inducing the clustering of both infected and uninfected erythrocytes (rosettes), as well as inducing endothelial activation. We hope this review will inspire more research to provide a complete understanding of malaria biology and promote interventions to eradicate the notorious disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chinonso Anthony Ezema
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Nigeria, Enugu State, 410001, Nigeria
- Division of Soft Matter, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, 060-0810, Japan
| | - Innocent Uzochukwu Okagu
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Nigeria, Enugu State, 410001, Nigeria
| | - Timothy Prince Chidike Ezeorba
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Nigeria, Enugu State, 410001, Nigeria.
- Department of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Nigeria, Enugu State, 410001, Nigeria.
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology, School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK.
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Ramelow J, Keleta Y, Niu G, Wang X, Li J. Plasmodium parasitophorous vacuole membrane protein Pfs16 promotes malaria transmission by silencing mosquito immunity. J Biol Chem 2023:104824. [PMID: 37196765 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.104824] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2022] [Revised: 04/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023] Open
Abstract
With rising cases for the first time in years, malaria remains a significant public health burden. The sexual stage of the malaria parasite infects mosquitoes to transmit malaria from host to host. Hence, an infected mosquito plays an essential role in malaria transmission. Plasmodium falciparum is the most dominant and dangerous malaria pathogen. Previous studies identified a sexual stage-specific protein 16 (Pfs16) localized to the parasitophorous vacuole membrane (PVM). Here we elucidate the function of Pfs16 during malaria transmission. Our structural analysis identified Pfs16 as an alpha-helical integral membrane protein with one transmembrane domain connecting to two regions across PVM. ELISA assays showed that insect cell-expressed recombinant Pfs16 (rPfs16) interacted with An. gambiae midguts, and microscopy found that rPfs16 bound to midgut epithelial cells. Transmission-blocking assays demonstrated that polyclonal antibodies against Pfs16 significantly reduced the number of oocysts in mosquito midguts. However, on the contrary, feeding rPfs16 increased the number of oocysts. Further analysis revealed that Pfs16 reduced the activity of mosquito midgut caspase 3/7, a key enzyme in the mosquito Jun-N-terminal kinase (JNK) immune pathway. We conclude that Pfs16 facilitates parasites to invade mosquito midguts by actively silencing the mosquito's innate immunity through its interaction with the midgut epithelial cells. Therefore, Pfs16 is a potential target to control malaria transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Ramelow
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Yacob Keleta
- Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Guodong Niu
- Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Xiaohong Wang
- Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Jun Li
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA; Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA; Biomolecular Sciences Institute, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA.
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Kwapong SS, Asare KK, Kusi KA, Pappoe F, Ndam N, Tahar R, Poinsignon A, Amoah LE. Mosquito bites and stage-specific antibody responses against Plasmodium falciparum in southern Ghana. Malar J 2023; 22:126. [PMID: 37061695 PMCID: PMC10105943 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-023-04557-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2022] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 04/17/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The human host elicits specific immune responses after exposure to various life stages of the malaria parasite as well as components of mosquito saliva injected into the host during a mosquito bite. This study describes differences in IgG responses against antigens derived from the sporozoite (PfCSP), asexual stage parasite (PfEBA175) and the gametocyte (Pfs230), in addition to an Anopheles gambiae salivary gland antigen (gSG6-P1), in two communities in Ghana with similar blood stage malaria parasite prevalence. METHODS This study used archived plasma samples collected from an earlier cross-sectional study that enrolled volunteers aged from 6 months to 70 years from Simiw, peri-urban community (N = 347) and Obom, rural community (N = 291). An archived thick and thin blood smear for microscopy was used for the estimation of Plasmodium parasite density and species and DNA extraction from blood spots and P. falciparum confirmation was performed using PCR. This study used the stored plasma samples to determine IgG antibody levels to P. falciparum and Anopheles salivary antigens using indirect ELISA. RESULTS Individuals from Simiw had significantly higher levels of IgG against mosquito gSG6-P1 [median (95%CI)] [2.590 (2.452-2.783) ng/mL] compared to those from Obom [2.119 (1.957-2.345) ng/mL], p < 0.0001. Both IgG responses against Pfs230proC (p = 0.0006), and PfCSP (p = 0.002) were significantly lower in volunteers from Simiw compared to the participants from Obom. The seroprevalence of PfEBA-175.5R (p = 0.8613), gSG6-P1 (p = 0.0704), PfCSP (p = 0.7798) IgG were all similar in Obom and Simiw. However, Pfs230 seroprevalence was significantly higher at Obom compared to Simiw (p = 0.0006). Spearman correlation analysis showed no significant association between IgG responses against gSG6-P1, PfCSP, Pfs230proC and PfEBA-175.5R and parasite density at both Obom and Simiw (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION In conclusion, the study showed that participants from Simiw had higher concentrations of circulating gSG6-P1 IgG antibodies but lower concentrations of P. falciparum antibodies, PfCSP IgG and Pfs230proC IgG compared to participants from Obom.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Shine Kwapong
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medical Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
- Department of Immunology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana
| | - Kwame Kumi Asare
- Department of Biomedical Science, School of Allied Health Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
- Biomedical and Clinical Research Centre, College of Allied Health Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Kwadwo Asamoah Kusi
- Department of Immunology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana
| | - Faustina Pappoe
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medical Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Nicaise Ndam
- MERIT, IRD, Université de Paris Cité, 75006, Paris, France
| | - Rachida Tahar
- MERIT, IRD, Université de Paris Cité, 75006, Paris, France
| | - Anne Poinsignon
- IRD, CNRS, MIVEGEC, University of Montpellier, 34000, Montpellier, France
| | - Linda Eva Amoah
- Department of Immunology, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana.
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Tripathi H, Bhalerao P, Singh S, Arya H, Alotaibi BS, Rashid S, Hasan MR, Bhatt TK. Malaria therapeutics: are we close enough? Parasit Vectors 2023; 16:130. [PMID: 37060004 PMCID: PMC10103679 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-023-05755-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Malaria is a vector-borne parasitic disease caused by the apicomplexan protozoan parasite Plasmodium. Malaria is a significant health problem and the leading cause of socioeconomic losses in developing countries. WHO approved several antimalarials in the last 2 decades, but the growing resistance against the available drugs has worsened the scenario. Drug resistance and diversity among Plasmodium strains hinder the path of eradicating malaria leading to the use of new technologies and strategies to develop effective vaccines and drugs. A timely and accurate diagnosis is crucial for any disease, including malaria. The available diagnostic methods for malaria include microscopy, RDT, PCR, and non-invasive diagnosis. Recently, there have been several developments in detecting malaria, with improvements leading to achieving an accurate, quick, cost-effective, and non-invasive diagnostic tool for malaria. Several vaccine candidates with new methods and antigens are under investigation and moving forward to be considered for clinical trials. This article concisely reviews basic malaria biology, the parasite's life cycle, approved drugs, vaccine candidates, and available diagnostic approaches. It emphasizes new avenues of therapeutics for malaria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Himani Tripathi
- Department of Biotechnology, Central University of Rajasthan, NH-8, Bandarsindri, 305817, Rajasthan, India
| | - Preshita Bhalerao
- Department of Biotechnology, Central University of Rajasthan, NH-8, Bandarsindri, 305817, Rajasthan, India
| | - Sujeet Singh
- Department of Biotechnology, Central University of Rajasthan, NH-8, Bandarsindri, 305817, Rajasthan, India
| | - Hemant Arya
- Department of Biotechnology, Central University of Rajasthan, NH-8, Bandarsindri, 305817, Rajasthan, India.
| | - Bader Saud Alotaibi
- Department of Clinical Laboratory Science, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Alquwayiyah, Shaqra University, Riyadh, 11971, Saudi Arabia
| | - Summya Rashid
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 173, Al-Kharj, 11942, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mohammad Raghibul Hasan
- Department of Clinical Laboratory Science, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Alquwayiyah, Shaqra University, Riyadh, 11971, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Tarun Kumar Bhatt
- Department of Biotechnology, Central University of Rajasthan, NH-8, Bandarsindri, 305817, Rajasthan, India.
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Khan SH, Shah NS, Nuzhat R, Majid A, Alquhayz H, Khan A. Malaria Parasite Classification Framework using a Novel Channel Squeezed and Boosted CNN. Microscopy (Oxf) 2022; 71:271-282. [PMID: 35640304 DOI: 10.1093/jmicro/dfac027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2022] [Revised: 04/21/2022] [Accepted: 05/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Malaria is a life-threatening infection that infects the red blood cells (RBCs) that gradually grows throughout the body. The plasmodium parasite is caused by a female anopheles mosquito bite and severely affects numerous individuals within the world every year. Therefore, early detection tests are required to predict infected parasitic cells. The proposed technique exploits deep convolutional neural network (CNN) learning capability to detect the thin-blood smear parasitic patients from healthy individuals. In this regard, the detection is accomplished using a novel STM-SB-RENet block-based CNN that employs the idea of split-transform-merge (STM) and channel Squeezing-Boosting (SB) in a modified fashion. In this connection, a new convolutional block-based STM is developed, which systematically implements region and edge operations to explore the parasitic malaria pattern related to region-homogeneity, structural obstruction, and boundary-defining features. Moreover, the diverse boosted feature maps are achieved by incorporating the new channel SB and Transfer Learning (TL) idea in each STM block at abstract, intermediate, and target levels to capture minor contrast and texture variation between parasitic and normal artifacts. The malaria input images to the proposed models are initially transformed using discrete wavelet transform to generate enhanced and reduced feature space. The proposed architectures are validated using hold-out cross-validation on the National Institute of Health Malaria dataset. The proposed methods outperform the train from scratch, and TL-based fine-tuned existing techniques. The considerable performance (accuracy: 97.98%, sensitivity: 0.988, F-score: 0.980, and AUC: 0.996) of STM-SB-RENet suggests that it can be utilized to screen parasitic malaria patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saddam Hussain Khan
- Pattern Recognition Lab, Department of Computer & Information Sciences, Pakistan Institute of Engineering & Applied Sciences (PIEAS), Nilore, Islamabad 45650, Pakistan.,PIEAS Artificial Intelligence Center (PAIC), PIEAS, Nilore, Islamabad 45650, Pakistan.,Department of Computer Systems Engineering, University of Engineering and Applied Sciences (UEAS), Swat 19060, Pakistan
| | - Najmus Saher Shah
- Pattern Recognition Lab, Department of Computer & Information Sciences, Pakistan Institute of Engineering & Applied Sciences (PIEAS), Nilore, Islamabad 45650, Pakistan.,PIEAS Artificial Intelligence Center (PAIC), PIEAS, Nilore, Islamabad 45650, Pakistan
| | - Rabia Nuzhat
- Department of Software Engineering, University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Taxila 47080, Pakistan
| | - Abdul Majid
- Pattern Recognition Lab, Department of Computer & Information Sciences, Pakistan Institute of Engineering & Applied Sciences (PIEAS), Nilore, Islamabad 45650, Pakistan
| | - Hani Alquhayz
- Department of Computer Science and Information, College of Science in Zulfi, Majmaah University, Al-Majmaah, 11952, Saudi Arabia
| | - Asifullah Khan
- Pattern Recognition Lab, Department of Computer & Information Sciences, Pakistan Institute of Engineering & Applied Sciences (PIEAS), Nilore, Islamabad 45650, Pakistan.,PIEAS Artificial Intelligence Center (PAIC), PIEAS, Nilore, Islamabad 45650, Pakistan.,Center for Mathematical Sciences, PIEAS, Nilore, Islamabad 45650, Pakistan
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10
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Consalvi S, Tammaro C, Appetecchia F, Biava M, Poce G. Malaria transmission blocking compounds: a patent review. Expert Opin Ther Pat 2022; 32:649-666. [PMID: 35240899 DOI: 10.1080/13543776.2022.2049239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Despite substantial progress in the field, malaria remains a global health issue and currently available control strategies are not sufficient to achieve eradication. Agents able to prevent transmission are likely to have a strong impact on malaria control and have been prioritized as a primary objective to reduce the number of secondary infections. Therefore, there is an increased interest in finding novel drugs targeting sexual stages of Plasmodium and innovative methods to target malaria transmission from host to vector, and vice versa. AREAS COVERED This review covers innovative transmission-blocking inventions patented between 2015 and October 2021. The focus is on chemical interventions which could be used as "chemical vaccines" to prevent transmission (small molecules, carbohydrates, and polypeptides). EXPERT OPINION Even though the development of novel strategies to block transmission still requires fundamental additional research and a deeper understanding of parasite sexual stages biology, the research in this field has significantly accelerated. Among innovative inventions patented over the last six years, the surface-delivery of antimalarial drugs to kill transmission-stages parasites in mosquitoes holds the highest promise for success in malaria control strategies, opening completely new scenarios in malaria transmission-blocking drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Consalvi
- Department of Chemistry and Technologies of Drug, Sapienza University of Rome, piazzale A. Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Chiara Tammaro
- Department of Chemistry and Technologies of Drug, Sapienza University of Rome, piazzale A. Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Federico Appetecchia
- Department of Chemistry and Technologies of Drug, Sapienza University of Rome, piazzale A. Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Mariangela Biava
- Department of Chemistry and Technologies of Drug, Sapienza University of Rome, piazzale A. Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanna Poce
- Department of Chemistry and Technologies of Drug, Sapienza University of Rome, piazzale A. Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy
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