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$12 million grant puts WA research team in the hot seat to help wipe out malaria forever

A world-leading research team built to tackle malaria has relocated from Oxford University to Western Australia to take advantage of the state’s growing big data talent pool.

Research

Spatio-temporal spread of artemisinin resistance in Southeast Asia

Current malaria elimination targets must withstand a colossal challenge-resistance to the current gold standard antimalarial drug, namely artemisinin derivatives. If artemisinin resistance significantly expands to Africa or India, cases and malaria-related deaths are set to increase substantially.

Research

Genetic variants of TLR4, including the novel variant, rs5030719, and related genes are associated with susceptibility to clinical malaria in African children

Malaria is a deadly disease caused by Plasmodium spp. Several blood phenotypes have been associated with malarial resistance, which suggests a genetic component to immune protection.

Research

Viral haemorrhagic fevers and malaria co-infections among febrile patients seeking health care in Tanzania

In recent years there have been reports of viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF) epidemics in sub-Saharan Africa where malaria is endemic. VHF and malaria have overlapping clinical presentations making differential diagnosis a challenge.

Research

Identifying individual, household and environmental risk factors for malaria infection on Bioko Island to inform interventions

Since 2004, malaria transmission on Bioko Island has declined significantly as a result of the scaling-up of control interventions. The aim of eliminating malaria from the Island remains elusive, however, underscoring the need to adapt control to the local context. Understanding the factors driving the risk of malaria infection is critical to inform optimal suits of interventions in this adaptive approach.

Research

The Centres for Disease Control light trap and the human decoy trap compared to the human landing catch for measuring Anopheles biting in rural Tanzania

Vector mosquito biting intensity is an important measure to understand malaria transmission. Human landing catch (HLC) is an effective but labour-intensive, expensive, and potentially hazardous entomological surveillance tool. The Centres for Disease Control light trap (CDC-LT) and the human decoy trap (HDT) are exposure-free alternatives.

Research

Emulator-based Bayesian optimization for efficient multi-objective calibration of an individual-based model of malaria

Individual-based models have become important tools in the global battle against infectious diseases, yet model complexity can make calibration to biological and epidemiological data challenging. We propose using a Bayesian optimization framework employing Gaussian process or machine learning emulator functions to calibrate a complex malaria transmission simulator.

Research

The effect and control of malaria in pregnancy and lactating women in the Asia-Pacific region

Half of all pregnancies at risk of malaria worldwide occur in the Asia-Pacific region, where Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax co-exist. Despite substantial reductions in transmission, malaria remains an important cause of adverse health outcomes for mothers and offspring, including pre-eclampsia. Malaria transmission is heterogeneous, and infections are commonly subpatent and asymptomatic.

Research

Spatial codistribution of HIV, tuberculosis and malaria in Ethiopia

HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria are the three most important infectious diseases in Ethiopia, and sub-Saharan Africa. Understanding the spatial codistribution of these diseases is critical for designing geographically targeted and integrated disease control programmes. This study investigated the spatial overlap and drivers of HIV, TB and malaria prevalence in Ethiopia.

News & Events

International funding boost for global malaria research

The Malaria Atlas Project (MAP) – which houses the world’s largest malaria database and is at the forefront of efforts to track and tackle the disease – has been awarded more than $16 million by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.