Tracking artemisinin-resistant malaria and missed diagnoses in Ethiopia
Epidemiology and determinants of emerging artemisinin-resistant malaria in Ethiopia
This project looks at why some malaria infections in Ethiopia stop responding to frontline drugs and sometimes evade common rapid tests, and who is most likely to be affected.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chapel Hill, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11394742 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you go to a participating clinic in Ethiopia with malaria symptoms, researchers may ask to collect a blood sample and basic health information. They will test samples for parasite gene changes linked to artemisinin drug resistance and for deletions that can make rapid diagnostic tests miss infections. The team will compare people with resistant or test-evading infections to those without to find risk factors and patterns of spread. Results are intended to help doctors and health officials improve testing and treatment choices.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are people in Ethiopia who present to participating health clinics with confirmed Plasmodium falciparum malaria.
Not a fit: People without falciparum malaria, those with other illnesses, or those living outside Ethiopia would not be eligible and would not directly benefit from participation.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help doctors pick treatments that still work and improve testing so fewer infections are missed.
How similar studies have performed: Genetic surveillance and clinic-based sampling have identified resistance markers and informed policy in other regions, but the combined emergence of artemisinin and diagnostic resistance in the Horn of Africa is a newer and more concerning problem.
Where this research is happening
Chapel Hill, United States
- Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill — Chapel Hill, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Parr, Jonathan Boyd — Univ of North Carolina Chapel Hill
- Study coordinator: Parr, Jonathan Boyd
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.