Cookies on this website

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings.

Strengthening malaria surveillance is a key intervention needed to reduce the global disease burden. Reliable serological markers of recent malaria exposure could improve current surveillance methods by allowing for accurate estimates of infection incidence from limited data. We studied the IgG antibody response to 111 Plasmodium falciparum proteins in 65 adult travellers followed longitudinally after a natural malaria infection in complete absence of re-exposure. We identified a combination of five serological markers that detect exposure within the previous three months with >80% sensitivity and specificity. Using mathematical modelling, we examined the antibody kinetics and determined that responses informative of recent exposure display several distinct characteristics: rapid initial boosting and decay, less inter-individual variation in response kinetics, and minimal persistence over time. Such serological exposure markers could be incorporated into routine malaria surveillance to guide efforts for malaria control and elimination.

Original publication

DOI

10.1038/s41467-021-27863-8

Type

Journal

Nature communications

Publication Date

17/01/2022

Volume

13

Addresses

Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine Solna and Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. victor.yman@ki.se.

Keywords

Humans, Plasmodium falciparum, Malaria, Protozoan Proteins, Antibodies, Protozoan, Epitopes, Cohort Studies, ROC Curve, Antibody Formation, Kinetics, Fluorescence, Models, Biological, Adult, Middle Aged, Child, Child, Preschool, Infant, Kenya, Female, Male, Young Adult, Biomarkers