Latest news with #Malaria
Time of India
a day ago
- Health
- Time of India
Vijayawada Municipal Corporation takes steps to check spread of mosquito-borne diseases
Vijayawada: With the monsoon season approaching, the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) is making efforts to prevent the spread of mosquito-borne diseases like malaria and dengue. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now A comprehensive action plan is being rolled out across the city to eliminate mosquito breeding sites and spread public awareness. As part of the initiative, the VMC has declared a month-long awareness campaign under the banner of 'Malaria Masotsavalu' (Malaria month celebrations). Commissioner HM Dhyana Chandra emphasised the importance of early prevention and community involvement. "During the rainy season, stagnant water becomes a prime breeding ground for mosquitoes. Hence, we're initiating mass awareness campaigns through posters and pamphlets in every ward secretariat to educate the public," he said. The commissioner also announced that every Friday will be observed as a 'Dry Day', urging citizens to regularly check and clear out potential mosquito-breeding containers such as flower pots, refrigerator trays, unused tyres, and old buckets. Biologist Surya Kumar stated that all major storm-water drains in the city have already been cleared in preparation for the rains. "We are deploying rapid response teams to clear waterlogging after rains and will use drones to spray anti-larval chemicals in hard-to-reach areas," he added, noting that focused attention is being given to the city's three main irrigation canals, which are often clogged with wastes. Chief medical and health officer Dr Gopalakrishna Nayak announced that frequent fever surveys will be conducted during June, July, and August. "These surveys will help us identify and monitor outbreaks of malaria, dengue, and typhoid, and take immediate preventive actions," he said.
Medscape
2 days ago
- Health
- Medscape
Study Reveals Malaria Parasite's Secrets
Malaria parasites can hide in people's bodies for years or even decades without causing symptoms by shutting down the genes that make them visible to the immune system, a new report found. This discovery explains how people can remain infected years after developing malaria and spread the disease through mosquitos that bite them, said Kirk W. Deitsch, PhD, professor with the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York City, and co-author of a study published in Nature Microbiology . 'What's probably happening in a place like Africa, where there's a lot of malaria transmission, is that people we thought didn't have malaria actually had these invisible parasites at really low levels in their system,' Deitsch told Medscape Medical News . The implications for elimination campaigns are significant. Currently, 'when we try to do a malaria elimination campaign, [we] treat the kids, the ones who are sick,' he said. The study suggests 'that we need to treat all asymptomatic people, the adults, because they're carrying these cryptic parasites that nobody knew about before.' Sticky Proteins and Spleen Avoidance The researchers sought to better understand how malaria persists in the body. 'There were these weird cases where a person who grew up in, let's say, Africa, had malaria several times, were no longer infected, and moved to the States. They lived in the States for a decade, maybe 12 or 13 years, and then they give blood for a transfusion, and the recipient of the transfusion gets really bad malaria,' Deitsch said. 'So clearly, those parasites have been hiding in this person for more than a decade, and nobody knew why. How are they hiding? Where are they?' Study authors focused on the var gene, which expresses an adhesive surface protein on the infected red blood cells in malaria. The protein is 'sticky,' allowing infected cells to attach to blood vessel walls and avoid being filtered out by the spleen, Deitsch said. But the parasite pays a price because the immune system can detect the sticky protein. Previous methods of analyzing the genetics of malaria looked at millions of parasites together. 'If you want to know which gene is being turned on in that population, you take all those parasites, you extract all the RNA from the population, and you look at which gene is turned on,' Deitsch explained. For the new study, researchers analyzed the malaria parasite at the single-cell level. 'We isolated single parasites and then looked at which gene is being expressed by just that individual parasite,' he said. 'We found there was always a group of parasites that had turned off the entire [ var ] gene family and were expressing no genes at all.' As a result, the red blood cells didn't produce the surface proteins, allowing them to be 'invisible' and evade the immune system. Like a Criminal The parasites don't turn invisible right away, Deitsch said. Instead, they constantly switch to different sticky proteins, like a criminal changing disguises, as the immune system swings into action. 'As soon as your antibody titer begins to rise, they just switch to a different adhesive protein.' 'The parasite only has so many copies of this adhesive protein that they can put out to the surface over their lifetime. So they run out of genes after about a year and a half or so.' Scientists used to think this meant the infection would be cleared. 'Everybody always assumed that once the parasite runs out of these genes, that the infection is over. You clear the infection, and then you're okay.' Deitsch used the metaphor of a criminal who has a closet full of 50-60 disguises. 'When you get to the last one, then you've run out, and the cops have figured out all your previous disguises. At the back of the closet, there's an invisibility cloak. They can put that on, and then the cops can't see you at all.' These invisible parasites exist at very low levels. 'Those parasites don't go to very high levels because your spleen is continuously filtering them,' Deitsch explained. 'But what they're able to do is maintain this low level of infection for a long time.' The only sign of continued infection may be a slightly enlarged spleen 'because the spleen is continuously clearing a lot of these invisible parasites by filtration,' Deitsch noted. Changes in Malaria Prevention Strategy? The findings suggest that anti-malaria efforts should treat entire populations with anti-malaria drugs, even healthy people, Deitsch said. And drugs could be developed to make the hidden parasites become visible to the immune system. However, neither strategy is simple, he said. What's next? 'We're going to continue working on the molecular mechanisms that mediate this process [and explore] how the parasites control their chromosomes and their genes to go into this silent, invisible state and then switch back out into a different state,' Deitsch said. Researchers are also studying basic questions about how parasites coordinate their disguise changes. 'There are literally trillions of parasites in the circulation of a sick individual, and they seem to coordinate switching their disguise,' Deitsch said. 'They all know to go to the same next disguise.' Outside Experts Weigh In Karine Le Roch, PhD, MS, director of the Center for Infectious Disease and Vector Research, University of California, Riverside, who was not involved with the paper, told Medscape Medical News that it's 'a rigorous, innovative, and impactful study that advances a long-standing question in malaria biology.' The report 'addresses a major paradox in malaria biology and offers a compelling explanation for asymptomatic chronic infections, which have long been poorly understood,' she said. Anna Bachmann, PhD, a research group leader at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine in Hamburg, Germany, also praised the study. Bachmann, who didn't work on the paper, said it suggests 'that P falciparum may possess even more sophisticated strategies to maintain long-term infections than previously understood.' She added that the findings have implications regarding whether migrants need more extensive screening and treatment for acute and chronic infections. 'Many parasitic infections in refugees from sub-Saharan Africa have been found to be clinically almost silent, leading to the recommendation that screening practices need to be improved, particularly with respect to parasitic infections,' she said. 'This is primarily to improve the health of migrants, but it could also become relevant in the context of a potential reintroduction of malaria in nonendemic regions as currently being observed in parts of the United States and southern Europe.' The National Institutes of Health supported Deitsch and another author via grants. Deitsch is a Stavros S. Niarchos Scholar and recipient of a William Randolph Hearst Endowed Faculty Fellowship Grant, and the William Randolph Hearst Foundation supported his institution. Another author received support from the Swiss National Science Foundation. The other authors had no disclosures.
India.com
03-06-2025
- General
- India.com
Monsoon care: 7 diseases to be aware of during rainy season
HerAs Monsoon has arrived, here are 7 diseases that you need to be cautious of during the rainy season. Dengue is transmitted through Aedes mosquito bites and causes high fever, rashes, and intense body pain. Malaria triggers fever, chills, and sweating. It is essential to keep surroundings clean and prevent mosquito bites during rainy season. Just like dengue, it is carried by mosquitoes in places that are badly flooded. It triggers joints pain, fever, and exhaustion. A bacterial infection that is caused by polluted water or soil, flooded with harmful viruses. Leptospirosis symptoms are fever, vomiting, and aching muscle It occurs during monsoon due to fast fluctuations in temperature and humidity. The symptoms are runny nose, cough, sore throat, and fever. A waterborne disease that lead to severe diarrhoea and dehydration. Food or water that has been contaminated is often the cause. Typhoid Infected by Salmonella bacteria when food or water is unhygienic. Common symptoms include persistent fever, fatigue, and abdominal pain.
The Hindu
21-05-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
No active COVID-19 case in Telangana, we are in a comfortable zone: Director of Public Health
With reports of rising COVID-19 cases in parts of Asia, concerns have emerged over whether India, and Telangana in particular should be worried. In an interview with The Hindu, Telangana's Director of Public Health and Family Welfare, Dr. B. Ravinder Naik, explains why there is no immediate cause for alarm and details the State's ongoing surveillance and preparedness measures. With COVID-19 cases increasing in parts of Asia, is there any cause of alarm for India or Telangana? At present, there is no cause for alarm. According to the national COVID portal, around 257 cases are active in India, but these are scattered and mostly limited to a few States. Importantly, as of now, there are no active COVID-19 cases reported from Telangana on the portal. So, we are in a comfortable zone. If any COVID-19 cases do emerge in Telangana in the near future, what steps will the Health department take? We have a pre-planned seasonal health preparedness strategy in place. Right now, we are focused on managing heat-related illnesses in summer. When the rainy season begins, our attention shifts to diseases like Dengue, Malaria, H1N1, respiratory infections, Acute Gastroenteritis, and COVID-19 as well. Over the years, especially through 2020, 2021, and 2022, we have learned a lot from our COVID-19 response. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has already declared that COVID-19 is no longer a global public health emergency. It has transitioned to an endemic stage, meaning it exists in the environment and may cause mild, flu-like symptoms such as cold, cough, fever, throat pain, and body aches. What should people do if they experience such symptoms now? In most cases, symptoms are mild or even asymptomatic. Simple home care like steam inhalation, increased fluid intake, and rest usually help recovery within a week. However, high-risk groups, such as the elderly, pregnant women, children, and those with compromised immunity (like Cancer or HIV patients) should be more cautious and seek medical advice if needed. Is there any surveillance in place at airports for international passengers, given the rise in COVID-19 cases in some countries? Yes, we have a dedicated special officer stationed at the airport, along with her team, to monitor incoming passengers from other countries. They are conducting regular surveillance and screening as part of our ongoing public health preparedness. This helps us stay vigilant and quickly identify any potential cases at the point of entry. From an infrastructure perspective, is Telangana ready to handle another wave, if it ever comes? Absolutely. Based on the experience of the last few years, Telangana has strengthened its entire healthcare infrastructure. From sub-centres to district hospitals, we have ensured availability of beds, oxygen supply, testing and tracing systems, referral services, and follow isolation protocols. Everything, from human resources to logistics, is in place to tackle any eventuality. Is any new advisory being planned by your department in the light of recent reports? Right now, there is no fresh advisory from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare or the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Whenever the Government of India receives new updates from WHO, they issue advisories accordingly. Once we get those guidelines, we act on them immediately. Meanwhile, seasonal disease advisories, which also include COVID-19, were already issued annually. So, we have year-round activity and surveillance in place. There is absolutely no need for public to panic. Could you elaborate on how Telangana's health preparedness has evolved since the pandemic began in 2020? When the pandemic began, we started with the infrastructure we had at that time. But over the years, we scaled up rapidly. We procured more beds, oxygen cylinders, staff, testing kits, everything needed to respond to COVID-19. From patient examination to testing, contact tracing, isolation, and treatment, we built a system that is now fully operational. We also conduct mock drills regularly to ensure readiness. From time to time, we assess, re-train staff, and update equipment or protocols wherever necessary. Our preparedness now is comprehensive. Should any situation arise again, we are ready to respond swiftly and effectively.
Time of India
14-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Pb reconstitutes village panels to boost grassroots healthcare
Chandigarh: In a significant move to strengthen healthcare delivery at the grassroots level, the Punjab health department has reconstituted village health, sanitation and nutrition committees (VHSNCs) across the state. Health minister Dr Balbir Singh called upon these committees to work in close coordination with the govt to combat vector- and water-borne diseases and contribute towards building a drug-free Punjab. Over 1 lakh members from 12,977 VHSNCs participated online in the inaugural event, showcasing strong community engagement. During a virtual interaction, Dr Balbir Singh personally addressed more than 100 members from selected VHSNCs representing the districts of Mansa, Patiala, Sangrur, Fatehgarh Sahib, Gurdaspur, and Bathinda. Highlighting the pivotal role of VHSNCs in addressing public health concerns, the minister said that the committees would focus on the prevention and control of vector-borne diseases such as Dengue, Malaria, and Chikungunya, along with waterborne illnesses like Diarrhoea. The health minister informed that Asha workers were trained to identify mosquito larvae under the ongoing "Har Shukarvar Dengue Te Vaar" campaign, which aims to eliminate stagnant water - a primary breeding ground for mosquitoes. As part of biological control measures , the health department is also distributing Gambusia fish to be released in village ponds to curb mosquito populations.
