The phylodynamic and spread of the invasive Asian malaria vectors, <em>Anopheles stephensi</em>, in Sudan (Publications)
Anopheles stephensi is an invasive Asian malaria vector that initially emerged in Africa in 2012 and was reported in Sudan in 2019. We investigated the distribution and population structure of An. stephensi
Diagnostic performance and comparison of ultrasensitive and conventional rapid diagnostic test, thick blood smear and quantitative PCR for detection... (Publications)
BACKGROUND: Progress towards malaria elimination has stagnated, partly because infections persisting at low parasite densities comprise a large reservoir contributing to ongoing malaria transmission and are difficult [...] and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) during a controlled human malaria infection (CHMI) study conducted in malaria exposed adults (NCT03590340). METHODS: Blood samples were collected from healthy [...] administered by direct venous inoculation. qPCR (18s ribosomal...
High-throughput barcoding method for the genetic surveillance of insecticide resistance and species identification in <em>Anopheles gambiae... (Publications)
Surveillance of malaria vector species and the monitoring of insecticide resistance are essential to inform malaria control strategies and support the reduction of infections and disease. Genetic barcoding [...] reliable and cost-effective high-throughput panel for surveillance of An. gambiae complex mosquitoes in malaria endemic regions.
Doxycycline responding illnesses in returning travellers with undifferentiated non-malaria fever: a European multicenter prospective cohort study (Publications)
BACKGROUND: Diagnosis of undifferentiated non-malaria fevers (NMF) in returning travellers is a great challenge. Currently, there is no consensus about the use of empirical antibiotics in returning travellers [...] travellers with undifferentiated non-malaria fevers (NMF). Although studies in endemic areas showed that a wide range of pathogens implicated in undifferentiated NMF are treatable with doxycycline, the role [...] should be considered in returning travellers with undifferentiated fever...
Potential opportunities and challenges of deploying next generation sequencing and CRISPR-Cas systems to support diagnostics and surveillance towards... (Publications)
Here we discuss the promise and challenges of NGS and CRISPR-Cas in the context of malaria as Africa moves towards malaria elimination. These innovative tools are urgently needed to strengthen the current [...] current diagnostic and surveillance systems. We discuss ongoing efforts to deploy these tools for malaria detection and molecular surveillance highlighting potential opportunities presented by these innovative [...] current workforce and infrastructure challenges. Overall, these ongoing...
Sub-national tailoring of malaria interventions in mainland Tanzania: simulation of the impact of strata-specific intervention combinations using... (Publications)
2015-2020 national malaria strategic plan (NMSP) and the epidemiological risk stratification at the council level in 2018. METHODS: Intervention mixes, selected by the National Malaria Control Programme [...] either based on estimates from the malaria indicator survey in 2016 or set to a hypothetical target of 85%. A previously calibrated mathematical model in OpenMalaria was used to compare intervention impact [...] BACKGROUND: To accelerate progress against malaria in high burden countries, a...
Evaluating malaria prevalence and land cover across varying transmission intensity in Tanzania using a cross-sectional survey of school-aged children (Publications)
n of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa has become increasingly stratified following decades of malaria control interventions. The extent to which environmental and land cover risk factors for malaria may differ [...] and could provide actionable targets to maximize the success of malaria control efforts. METHODS: This study used cross-sectional malaria survey data from a nationally representative cohort of school-aged [...] land cover and malaria prevalence within three distinct strata of...
Tenfold difference in DNA recovery rate: systematic comparison of whole blood vs. dried blood spot sample collection for malaria molecular... (Publications)
BACKGROUND: Molecular and genomic surveillance is becoming increasingly used to track malaria control and elimination efforts. Blood samples can be collected as whole blood and stored at - 20 degrees C