Malaria

Eugene Chan of the DNA Medicine Institute in the U.S. proposes to develop a battery-powered non-invasive finger scanner to detect and measure hemozoin, a byproduct formed by malaria parasites, through the finger's capillaries. If successful, mass manufacturing of the scanner should be possible due to basic components.

Mark Mescher, Consuelo De Moraes and Andrew Read of Pennsylvania State University in the U.S. will test the theory that malaria infection induces characteristic odor cues, even in asymptomatic individuals. By identifying these chemical cues with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, they will determine if there are biomarkers for diagnosis of infection that could be used to develop a diagnostic to aid in eradication of malaria. This project's Phase I research showed that malaria does produce characteristic odor cues, including several that change through the course of infection.

Keith Dunning of the Millennium Health Microscope Foundation in the United Kingdom will develop a fluorescent variation of a new hand-held, low-cost microscope. Specimens such as Malaria parasites or Tuberculosis bacterium will become fluorescent at specific wavelengths thus easy to detect at low magnifications using this new palm-sized microscope.

Quan Liu of Nanyang Technological University in Singapore proposes to use magnetic nanoparticles with blood samples to attract and amplify hemozoin, a byproduct of malaria parasites found in infected red blood cells. Liu will use resonance Raman scattering (RSS) to observe and quantify the hemozoin for a simplified, rapid diagnosis of malaria.

George Whitesides of Harvard College in the U.S. will develop a novel low-cost device that can detect the presence of malaria-infected red blood cells in a drop of blood using an egg beater as a centrifuge. The blood drop is added to a short polyethylene tube filled with three polymer solutions, each of which have different densities and do not mix. The tube is connected to an egg beater and rotated for five minutes, allowing the blood to separate into layers of healthy erythrocytes, infected erythrocytes and white blood cells, detectable in the spaces between the polymer layers.

Jackie Obey of the University of Eastern Africa, Baraton in Kenya will test the efficacy of a diagnostic test for malaria in which small amounts of blood are mixed with an iron solution to create vibrant colors that indicate the amount of a protein released by the malaria parasite.

Juan Santiago of Stanford University in the U.S. will develop small, disposable diagnostic device that utilizes isotachophoresis, a technique that separates charged particles, to concentrate a key biomarker of malaria parasites. The goal of this technique is to provide test results within three minutes at a sensitivity much greater than current tests, allowing for detection of malaria at much earlier stages of infection and in asymptomatic individuals.

Changhuei Yang of the California Institute of Technology in the U.S. will evaluate the feasibility of using a "microscope on a chip" along with a hand-held reader to detect and analyze cells and parasites in bodily fluids. If successful; this technology, which does not use traditional lenses, could provide diagnostic capabilities for a wide range of diseases including malaria.

Howard Bernstein of Seventh Sense Biosystems in the U.S. will engineer a skin patch that can detect and measure malaria proteins in interstitial fluid. If successful, an easy-to-use biocompatible device may be able to allow continued monitoring of infection for a few weeks, instead of a single time point.

Wei Lu of the University of Michigan in the U.S. will test the theory that red blood cells infected with malaria have significantly different characteristics when subjected to light in ultra-far infrared spectrum. Using these techniques, this project aims to develop a non-invasive tool to scan capillaries near the body surface and diagnose malaria.