The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared for marketing the Binax NOW Malaria Test, the first authorized U.S. rapid test for malaria, a mosquito-borne disease caused by a parasite. The test is intended for laboratory use.

A Kansas State University biochemist's contributions to research on immune systems in mosquitoes are part of a journal article appearing in Science magazine.

Endemic Burkitt lymphoma is a form of cancer that accounts for up to 74% of malignant disorders in children in equatorial Africa. Malaria and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) are known cofactors in its development, but to date, their relative contribution has not been well understood.

G8 Leaders Promise $60 Billion, One-Third of Global Need

As G-8 leaders debate what action they are going to take to tackle climate change, poor communities in Kenya's highlands are already feeling the impact of global warming. Katy Migiro reports from our Nairobi bureau that increased temperatures are bringing malarial mosquitoes to areas that were previously safe from the disease that kills more Africans than any other.

The reality of the threat from vector-borne diseases has been recognized and the problem is prompting research scientists to take a strong interest. Most of these infections, classified as emerging or re-emerging diseases, are linked to ecosystem changes, climatic variations or pressure from human activities.

Lack of coordination between donors and international health agencies is leading to the needless deaths of too many African children from malaria, says a team of health researchers from Burkina Faso and the University of Heidelberg.

More than a quarter of the deaths of children under five in Senegal can be attributed to malaria. A U.S. government campaign to distribute mosquito nets and educate the population about treatment and prevention aims to cut that number in half. Selah Hennessy has more from Dakar's crowded and impoverished suburbs, where the U.S. ambassador kicked off this year's campaign.

During the first 24 hours of invasion by the malaria-inducing parasite Plasmodium falciparum, red blood cells start to lose their ability to deform and squeeze through tiny blood vessels-one of the hallmarks of the deadly disease that infects nearly 400 million people each year. Now, an international team of researchers led by an MIT professor has demonstrated just why that happens.

One person dies of it every 30 seconds, it rivals HIV and tuberculosis as the world's most deadly infection and the vast majority of its victims are under five years old. Now, just over 100 years since Britain's Sir Ronald Ross was awarded the Nobel Prize for finally proving that malaria is transmitted by mosquitoes, researchers at The University of Nottingham believe they have made a significant breakthrough in the search for an effective vaccine.

Richard Idro, M.M.E.D., of the Kenya Medical Research Institute, Kilifi, Kenya and colleagues conducted a study to determine the incidence and neurological involvement of African children with acute falciparum malaria (a severe type of malaria).

Despite improvements in the ability to diagnose malaria, these diagnostic tests are often underused in Zambia, and patients with negative test results are often prescribed anti-malaria medications, according to a study in the May 23/30 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on malaria.