Researchers analyze connections between Ebola, malaria

Operating on the knowledge that Ebola and malaria are both endemic to Central and West Africa, and that many people treated for Ebola have been found to be infected with malarial parasites as well, researchers from Texas Biomed and the University of Iowa are working to assess a connection between the two diseases.

Study researchers have pooled resources in assessing the impact of malarial infection on the consequences of Ebola infections. They have been given a National Institutes of Health grant to that end.

“It has been postulated for some time now that malaria and Ebola virus co-infection has an effect on the outcome of Ebola virus disease,” Staff Scientist Olena Shtanko said. “This is a really fascinating study which started in our lab this month.”

Shtanko, as part of that NIH grant, will take malaria-infected mice and introduce them to Ebola virus in a lab. Shtanko and her colleagues want to investigate a theory that active malarial infections could provide a greater chance of surviving filovirus infection, while people with a chronic malarial infection are left more susceptible to Ebola. It could impact how doctors tailor therapies for Ebola virus in the future, in areas where both Ebola and Malaria are present.

To date, more than 150 people have died from Ebola infection this year alone. The disease boasts a 90 percent kill rate, though scientists still do not know who is most susceptible to its assault.