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Tackling Malaria Transmission in Sub-Saharan Africa

May 15, 2018

Miriam Laufer, MD

Lauren Cohee, MDTwo malaria experts in the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health at the University of Maryland School of Medicine wrote a commentary published in the June Issue of The Lancet Global Health discussing the prevalence of malaria in school-age children in sub-Saharan Africa. Miriam Laufer, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Associate Director for Malaria Research CVD, and Lauren Cohee, MD, Instructor, Pediatrics, noted that often malaria infection is more common in school-age children than younger children and adults.

“After almost two decades of substantial reductions in the global burden of malaria, progress has stagnated. Global scientific and policy leaders agree that to achieve malaria eradication, interventions must focus not only on preventing malaria disease but also on decreasing malaria transmission. Children younger than 5 years and pregnant women are at the highest risk of severe disease and have previously been the primary targets of malaria control interventions. However, apparently healthy older children and adults also harbor transmissible malaria parasites,” Drs. Laufer and Cohee wrote.

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About the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health

For over 40 years, researchers in the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health have worked domestically and internationally to develop, test, and deploy vaccines to aid the world’s underserved populations. The CVD is an academic enterprise engaged in the full range of infectious disease intervention from basic laboratory research through vaccine development, pre-clinical and clinical evaluation, large-scale pre-licensure field studies, and post-licensure assessments. CVD has worked to eliminate vaccine-preventable diseases. The CVD has created and tested vaccines against cholera, typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever, non-typhoidal salmonella disease, shigellosis (bacillary dysentery), Escherichia coli diarrhea, nosocomial pathogens, tularemia, influenza, and other infectious diseases.

CVD’s research covers the broader goal of improving global health by conducting innovative, leading research in Baltimore and around the world. CVD researchers are developing new and improved ways to diagnose, prevent, treat, control, and eradicate diseases of global impact. Currently, these diseases include malaria, typhoid, shigella and vaccine-preventable infectious diseases. CVD researchers have been involved in critical vaccine development for emerging pathogens such as Zika and Ebola. In addition, CVD’s  work focuses on the ever-growing challenge of anti-microbial resistance. medschool.umaryland.edu/CVD/

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Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health
University of Maryland School of Medicine
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Office:(410) 706-2884

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