Vascular Inflammation in Malaria Pathogenesis

The pathogenesis of malaria is characterized by vascular inflammation exacerbated by immune cells that travel to areas where red blood cells infected with parasites stick to the endothelium lining the blood vessels. The molecules that mediate this process are not well-understood, yet such knowledge may lead to therapeutic targets that block vascular inflammation due to malaria. The Lamb lab has made significant discoveries demonstrating a key role for receptor tyrosine kinase family Eph receptors in malaria pathogenesis. They have identified EphB2 as a critical mediator of malaria-induced liver fibrosis and EphA2 as a molecule essential for the integrity of the blood-brain barrier in cerebral malaria. The malaria studies were carried out as part of the Utah Global Health Initiative with the Pasteur Institute in Cameroon, Central Africa.