Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute

Jan 24 2025 83 ep. 4 mins 29
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute Podcast artwork

Impactful malaria science, and the trailblazers leading the fight. A podcast from the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute.

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EXTENDED: Discovering New Targets for Malaria Vaccines and Monoclonal Antibodies

Jan 24 2025 8 mins  
Today, the discovery of antibodies targeting a new region of the malaria parasite that could serve as a promising target for drugs and vaccines.

Scientists Uncover 'Site of Vulnerability' in Malaria Parasites

Jan 14 2025 1 mins  
Scientists discover new antibodies - a promising target for clinical exploration. Transcript The currently licenced malaria vaccines and monoclonal antibodies all target a well-known region of the same malaria protein. That protein – the circumsporozoite protein, commonly known as CSP – covers the surface of the parasite as it enters the human skin through a mosquito bite. By t

EXTENDED: How AI Chatbots Could Help Predict Antimalarial Drug Resistance Before It Strikes (with Robert Opoka and Elizabeth Winzeler)

Dec 20 2024 12 mins  
We focus on drug resistance and the troubling news that the frontline drug against malaria, artemisinin, is failing due to resistant parasites in severe cases of malaria, and how the collective efforts of drug development – and the data produced – could be used to build an AI chatbot capable of predicting resistance before it strikes. With Robert Opoka and Elizabeth Winzeler. A

How to Predict (And Avert) Antimalarial Drug Resistance

Dec 13 2024 1 mins  
Researchers search for ways to predict antimalarial drug resistance and identify more effective drug combinations. Transcript The front-line treatment for malaria is typically a combination of drugs called artemisinin-based combination therapy. Resistance to treatment has already been reported in mild cases of malaria, but now, for the first time, it’s also being reported in seve

‘Big Push’ Needed to Turn Tide on Malaria – WHO

Dec 11 2024 1 mins  
The World Health Organization has today released its annual World Malaria Report. Here are the takeaways. Transcript The World Health Organization has today released its annual World Malaria Report. Here are the takeaways. Since the turn of the century, the global malaria community has averted over 2.2 billion malaria cases and 12.7 million deaths, with over a million deaths preven

EXTENDED: Listening to Malaria – How Lasers and Ultrasound Could Revolutionize Diagnosis (with Sunil Parikh, Vladimir Zharov and Yap Boum)

Nov 26 2024 11 mins  
An innovative, non-invasive diagnostic tool that could revolutionize malaria testing, with the potential to be built into wearable devices. In this extended episode of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute, we ask: What are the limitations of current malaria diagnostic methods? How is a 'cytophone' - and what makes it innovative? Why is the detection of hemozoin significant in malaria

The Skin-Contact Malaria Test That Could Revolutionize Diagnostics

Nov 12 2024 1 mins  
Using lasers and ultrasound, the ‘cytophone’ detects a key byproduct of all malaria parasites. Transcript Among the most commonly used malaria diagnostic tests is the rapid diagnostic test (RDT), which detects malaria antigens from a drop of blood. Whilst RDTs are small and cheap, they're invasive and new strains of the parasite have evolved that can escape RDT diagnosis. Now,

EXTENDED: First Reference Genome Sequence of P. vivax from Ethiopia (with Jane Carlton, Delenasaw Yewhalaw, and Francisco Callejas Hernandez)

Oct 29 2024 8 mins  
Today, how DNA from a single patient in Ethiopia can shed light on the big picture of malaria. Why is Plasmodium vivax significant in malaria research, especially in Ethiopia? How does genomic sequencing contribute to understanding and controlling malaria? How are advances in sequencing technology influencing malaria research? With Jane Carlton, Delenasaw Yewhalaw, and Francisco

How Comparative Genomics Can Help Find the Best Treatments for Malaria

Oct 15 2024 1 mins  
'Comparative genomics' helps identify genes that can serve as targets for future drugs and vaccines. Transcript Not all parasites are alike. Genetic mutations mean that malaria parasites evolve differently in different regions – and even within the same region. One species thought to be particularly genetically diverse is Plasmodium vivax. It’s the second most common species of

EXTENDED: The Surprising Advantage of Transmission-Blocking Vaccines (with Ilinca Ciubotariu, Qixin He and Giovanna Carpi)

Oct 01 2024 9 mins  
The World Health Organisation has recommended two licenced malaria vaccines. Those vaccines have been a long time coming - but are they the best? In this extended episode of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute, we ask: Why is developing a malaria vaccine so challenging? How does antigen variation play affect the effectiveness of malaria vaccines? What are transmission-blocking vaccin