Genomic Characterization of Recrudescent Plasmodium malariae after Treatment with Artemether/Lumefantrine.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Rutledge GG
PROVIDER: S-EPMC5547787 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Treatment recommendations for Plasmodium malariae and Plasmodium ovale malaria are largely based on anecdotal evidence. The aim of this prospective study, conducted in Gabon, was to systematically assess the efficacy and safety of artemether-lumefantrine for the treatment of patients with uncomplicated P. malariae or P. ovale species monoinfections or mixed Plasmodium infections. Patients with microscopically confirmed P. malariae, P. ovale, or mixed-species malaria with at least one of these two Plasmodium species were treated with an oral, fixed-dose combination of artemether-lumefantrine for 3 consecutive days. The primary endpoints were per-protocol PCR-corrected adequate clinical and parasitological response (ACPR) on days 28 and 42. Tolerability and safety were recorded throughout the follow-up period. Seventy-two participants (42 male and 30 female) were enrolled; 62.5% of them had PCR-corrected mixed Plasmodium infections. Per protocol, PCR-corrected ACPR rates were 96.6% (95% confidence interval [CI], 91.9 to 100) on day 28 and 94.2% (95% CI, 87.7 to 100) on day 42. Considering Plasmodium species independently from their coinfecting species, day 42 ACPR rates were 95.5% (95% CI, 89.0 to 100) for P. falciparum, 100% (exact CI, 84.6 to 100) for P. malariae, 100% (exact CI, 76.8 to 100) for P. ovale curtisi, and 90.9% (95% CI, 70.7 to 100) for P. ovale wallikeri Study drug-related adverse events were generally mild or moderate. In conclusion, this clinical trial demonstrated satisfying antimalarial activity of artemether-lumefantrine against P. ovalewallikeri, P. ovale curtisi, P. malariae, and mixed Plasmodium infections, with per-protocol efficacies of 90% to 100% and without evident tolerability or safety concerns. (This trial was registered in the clinical study database ClinicalTrials.gov under the identifier NCT02528279.).
| S-EPMC5826119 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND:Artemisinin-based combinations differ in their impact on gametocyte prevalence and density. This study assessed female and male gametocyte dynamics after treating children with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria with either pyronaridine-artesunate (PA) or artemether-lumefantrine (AL). METHODS:Kenyan children with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria were included and randomly assigned to PA or AL treatment. Filter paper blood samples were collected as a source of RNA for quantitative reverse-transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) and nucleic acid sequence based amplification (QT-NASBA) to detect female gametocytes (targeting Pfs25 mRNA). Male gametocytes were detected by qRT-PCR (targeting PfMGET mRNA). Duration of gametocyte carriage, the female and male gametocyte response and the agreement between qRT-PCR and QT-NASBA were determined. RESULTS:The mean duration of female gametocyte carriage was significantly longer for PA (4.9 days) than for AL (3.8 days) as estimated by QT-NASBA (P?=?0.036), but this difference was less clear when determined by Pfs25 qRT-PCR (4.5 days for PA and 3.7 for AL, P?=?0.166). qRT-PCR based female gametocyte prevalence decreased from 100% (75/75) at baseline to 6.06% (4/66) at day 14 in the AL group and from 97.7% (83/85) to 13.9% (11/79) in the PA group. Male gametocyte prevalence decreased from 41.3% (31/75) at baseline to 19.7% (13/66) at day 14 in the AL group and from 35.3% (30/85) to 22.8% (18/79) in the PA group. There was good agreement between Pfs25 qRT-PCR and QT-NASBA female gametocyte prevalence (0.85, 95% CI 0.82-0.87). CONCLUSIONS:This study indicates that female gametocyte clearance may be slightly faster after AL compared to PA. Male gametocytes showed similar post-treatment clearance between study arms. Future studies should further address potential differences between the post-treatment transmission potential after PA compared to AL. Trial registration This study is registered at clinicaltrials.gov under NCT02411994. Registration date: 8 April 2015. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02411994?term=pyronaridine-artesunate&cond=Malaria&cntry=KE&rank=1.
| S-EPMC5987563 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundWe assessed the efficacy of artemisinin-based combination therapies for treatment of uncomplicated falciparum malaria, with or without co-infecting Plasmodium spp., in Sumatera, Indonesia.MethodsFebrile patients aged >6 months with uncomplicated P. falciparum were randomized to receive dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine or artemether-lumefantrine, plus single-dose primaquine, and were followed for 42 days. Mixed Plasmodium infections were included; P. vivax infections received 14 days of primaquine. We retrospectively restricted the analysis to cases with polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-confirmed parasitemia. Recurrent parasitemia in follow-up was identified by species-specific nested PCR.ResultsOf the 3731 participants screened, 302 were enrolled and randomized. In the dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine arm, P. falciparum infections were confirmed by PCR in 59 participants, with mixed infections in 23 (39.0%). In the artemether-lumefantrine arm, P. falciparum infections were confirmed by PCR in 55 participants, with mixed infections in 16 (29.0%). Both regimens were well tolerated, and symptoms improved rapidly in all treated participants. In the dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine arm, 1 P. falciparum recurrence (on day 7) and 6 P. malariae recurrences (1 had a mixed infection with P. falciparum) were identified during days 3-42 of follow-up. In the artemether-lumefantrine arm, 1 P. falciparum/P. malariae/P. vivax recurrence occurred on day 35. Submicroscopic persistence occurred during follow-up in 21 (37%) of 57 receiving dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine and 20 (39%) of 51 receiving artemether-lumefantrine.ConclusionsIn Sumatera, both regimens effectively cleared initial parasitemia, but P. falciparum and P. malariae persisted in some individuals. Molecular species detection should be deployed in antimalarial efficacy trials in Indonesia.Trial registrationNCT02325180.
| S-EPMC7216766 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Specially created pediatric formulations have the potential to improve the acceptability, effectiveness, and accuracy of dosing of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) in young children, a patient group that is inherently vulnerable to malaria. Artemether-lumefantrine (AL) Dispersible is a pediatric formulation of AL that is specifically tailored for the treatment of children with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria, offering benefits relating to efficacy, convenience and acceptance, accuracy of dosing, safety, sterility, stability, and a pharmacokinetic profile and bioequivalence similar to those of crushed and intact AL tablets. However, despite being the first pediatric antimalarial to meet World Health Organization (WHO) specifications for use in infants and children who are ?5 kg in body weight and its inclusion in WHO Guidelines, there are few publications that focus on AL Dispersible. Based on a systematic review of the recent literature, this paper provides a comprehensive overview of the clinical experience with AL Dispersible to date. A randomized, phase 3 study that compared the efficacy and safety of AL Dispersible to those of crushed AL tablets in 899 African children reported high PCR-corrected cure rates at day 28 (97.8% and 98.5% for AL Dispersible and crushed tablets, respectively), and the results of several subanalyses of these data indicate that this activity is observed regardless of patient weight, food intake, and maximum plasma concentrations of artemether or its active metabolite, dihydroartemisinin. These and other clinical data support the continued use of pediatric antimalarial formulations in all children <5 years of age with uncomplicated malaria when accompanied by continued monitoring for the emergence of resistance.
| S-EPMC4505267 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Artemether/lumefantrine (AL) has been adopted as the treatment of choice for uncomplicated malaria in Kenya and other countries in the region. Six-dose artemether/lumefantrine tablets are highly effective and safe for the treatment of infants and children weighing between five and 25 kg with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria. However, oral paediatric formulations are urgently needed, as the tablets are difficult to administer to young children, who cannot swallow whole tablets or tolerate the bitter taste of the crushed tablets.A randomized, controlled, open-label trial was conducted comparing day 28 PCR corrected cure-rates in 245 children aged 6-59 months, treated over three days with either six-dose of artemether/lumefantrine tablets (Coartem) or three-dose of artemether/lumefantrine suspension (Co-artesiane) for uncomplicated falciparum malaria in western Kenya. The children were followed-up with clinical, parasitological and haematological evaluations over 28 days.Ninety three percent (124/133) and 90% (121/134) children in the AL tablets and AL suspension arms respectively completed followed up. A per protocol analysis revealed a PCR-corrected parasitological cure rate of 96.0% at Day 28 in the AL tablets group and 93.4% in the AL suspension group, p = 0.40. Both drugs effectively cleared gametocytes and were well tolerated, with no difference in the overall incidence of adverse events.The once daily three-dose of artemether-lumefantrine suspension (Co-artesiane(R)) was not superior to six-dose artemether-lumefantrine tablets (Coartem) for the treatment of uncomplicated malaria in children below five years of age in western Kenya.
| S-EPMC2635380 | biostudies-literature
Project description:To date no comparative trials have been done, to our knowledge, of fixed-dose artemisinin combination therapies (ACTs) for the treatment of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in pregnancy. Evidence on the safety and efficacy of ACTs in pregnancy is needed as these drugs are being used increasingly throughout the malaria-affected world. The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy, tolerability, and safety of artemether-lumefantrine, the most widely used fixed ACT, with 7 d artesunate monotherapy in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy.An open-label randomised controlled trial comparing directly observed treatment with artemether-lumefantrine 3 d (AL) or artesunate monotherapy 7 d (AS7) was conducted in Karen women in the border area of northwestern Thailand who had uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. The primary endpoint was efficacy defined as the P. falciparum PCR-adjusted cure rates assessed at delivery or by day 42 if this occurred later than delivery, as estimated by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Infants were assessed at birth and followed until 1 y of life. Blood sampling was performed to characterise the pharmacokinetics of lumefantrine in pregnancy. Both regimens were very well tolerated. The cure rates (95% confidence interval) for the intention to treat (ITT) population were: AS7 89.2% (82.3%-96.1%) and AL 82.0% (74.8%-89.3%), p = 0.054 (ITT); and AS7 89.7% (82.6%-96.8%) and AL 81.2% (73.6%-88.8%), p = 0.031 (per-protocol population). One-third of the PCR-confirmed recrudescent cases occurred after 42 d of follow-up. Birth outcomes and infant (up to age 1 y) outcomes did not differ significantly between the two groups. The pharmacokinetic study indicated that low concentrations of artemether and lumefantrine were the main contributors to the poor efficacy of AL.The current standard six-dose artemether-lumefantrine regimen was well tolerated and safe in pregnant Karen women with uncomplicated falciparum malaria, but efficacy was inferior to 7 d artesunate monotherapy and was unsatisfactory for general deployment in this geographic area. Reduced efficacy probably results from low drug concentrations in later pregnancy. A longer or more frequent AL dose regimen may be needed to treat pregnant women effectively and should now be evaluated. Parasitological endpoints in clinical trials of any antimalarial drug treatment in pregnancy should be extended to delivery or day 42 if it comes later.Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN86353884.
| S-EPMC2605900 | biostudies-literature
Project description:IntroductionAn investigation of whether treatment of asymptomatic carriers of Plasmodium falciparum with artemether-lumefantrine (AL), in addition to the routine treatment of symptomatic cases with AL, could improve the prevalence of anemia in 18 villages in Burkina Faso.MethodsThis was a single-center, controlled, parallel, cluster-randomized study to evaluate the effect of systematic treatment of P. falciparum asymptomatic carriers at a community level on hemoglobin (Hb) levels and anemic status of children (<5 years) and adults during four screening campaigns carried out over a 12-month period, compared with no treatment of asymptomatic carriers.ResultsThe change in Hb level in all asymptomatic carriers aged >6 months from Day 1 to Day 28 of the first campaign was +0.53 g/dl (from 11.81 to 12.33 g/dl) in the intervention arm vs. -0.21 g/dl (from 12.06 to 11.86 g/dl) in the control arm (P < 0.001). During the same period, the proportion of asymptomatic carriers aged >6 months to <5 years with anemia in the intervention arm decreased by 31.1% (from 75.7% to 44.6%), compared with a decrease of 4.7% (from 76.3% to 71.6%) in the control arm. Over 12 months, the proportion of asymptomatic carriers with anemia (mild, moderate, or severe) was reduced in both arms.ConclusionSystematic screening and treatment of asymptomatic carriers of P. falciparum with AL at the community level can reduce the prevalence of anemia in children in the short term (28 days), although the effect was not maintained at 12 months.
| S-EPMC4108097 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND:Blackwater fever is a complication of malaria infection consisting of a syndrome of febrile intra-vascular haemolysis with severe anaemia and intermittent passage of dark-red to black colour urine. Despite numerous reports and studies of this condition, its pathogenesis remains incompletely understood. CASE PRESENTATION:This report describes a case of classic blackwater fever in a returning traveller, without prior history of malaria infection nor usage of anti-malarial prophylaxis, treated with two courses of oral artemether-lumefantrine combination therapy. Unusual persistence of submicroscopic Plasmodium falciparum parasitaemia was detected by PCR for 18 days after initiation of treatment. CONCLUSION:To the authors' knowledge this is the first reported occurrence of a case of blackwater fever associated with prolonged submicroscopic parasitaemia. This unusual case challenges the current knowledge of the pathogenesis of this condition and opens questions that may have important diagnostic and treatment implications.
| S-EPMC5771159 | biostudies-literature
Project description:As Ethiopia is one of the sub-Saharan countries with a great burden of malaria the effectiveness of first line anti-malarial drugs is the major concern. The aim of this study was to synthesize the available evidence on the efficacy of artemether-lumefantrine in the treatment of uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Ethiopia. This was done by performing a meta-analysis of recent studies conducted in the country on this topic.Studies published between January 2010 and January 2017 that reported on the efficacy of artemether-lumefantrine in the treatment of P. falciparum malaria in Ethiopian patients were searched for using the PubMed and Google Scholar databases. Ten prospective single-arm cohort studies that followed patients for 28-42 days were included in this analysis. All of the included studies were deemed to be of high quality.Ten studies involving 1179 patients that were eligible for meta-analysis were identified. At recruitment, the average parasite count per patient was 1 2981/?l of blood. On the third day of treatment, 96.7% and 98.5% of the study subjects become fever-free and parasite-free, respectively. Based on the per protocol analysis, the cure rate after use of artemether-lumefantrine was 98.2% (polymerase chain reaction corrected) and 97.01% (polymerase chain reaction uncorrected) after 28 days of follow-up. The reinfection rate within 28 days was 1.1% and the recrudescence rate was 1.9%.This review found that the cure rate for uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria using artemether-lumefantrine in Ethiopia is still high enough to recommend the drug as a first-line agent. There should be careful periodic monitoring of the efficacy of this drug, as treatment failure may occur due to resistance, sub-therapeutic levels that may occur due to non-adherence, or inadequate absorption.
| S-EPMC5686809 | biostudies-other
Project description:BACKGROUND:Extended artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for treatment of uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria with already existing drug regimens, such as artemether-lumefantrine, might be effective in tackling the emerging ACT resistance. However, given the history of cardiotoxicity among anti-malarial drugs structurally similar to lumefantrine, the potential effect of extended artemether-lumefantrine treatment on the electrocardiographic (ECG) QTc interval is of high concern. METHODS:Male and non-pregnant females aged 1-65 years, diagnosed with uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria in Bagamoyo district, Tanzania, were randomized into two arms. The intervention arm received an extended, i.e. 6-day, course of artemether-lumefantrine and an additional single low-dose primaquine (0.25 mg/kg) administered together with the last artemether-lumefantrine dose. The control arm received the standard weight-based 3-day course. ECGs were performed at day 0 and 4-5 h after the last dose at day 5. QT intervals were read manually using the tangent method and automatically. Bazett's (QTcB) and Fridericia's (QTcF) formulae were used for correction for heart rate. Descriptive statistics were used to calculate baseline characteristics and the number of supra-thresholds QTc intervals (QTc prolongation?>?500, change in QTc interval (?QTc)?>?60 ms). The mean change in QTc interval in and between the two arms was compared using the paired t-test and independent samples t-test, respectively. RESULTS:A total of 195 patients were enrolled, 103 and 92 in the intervention and control arm, respectively. No patient experienced QTc intervals?>?500 ms on day 5 by both formulae. Patients with ?QTc?>?60 ms, for QTcF were 6/103 (5.8%) vs 2/92 (2.2%) and for QTcB 2/103 (1.9%) vs 1/92 (1.1%) in the intervention and control arms, respectively. The mean difference in ?QTc interval was statistically significant between the two arms with both correction formulae, 11.4 ms (95% CI 2.7-20.0, p?=?0.010) and 13.4 ms (95% CI 5.3-21.5, p?=?0.001), for QTcB and QTcF, respectively. CONCLUSION:The extended 6-day course of artemether-lumefantrine did not reveal clinically relevant QTc prolonging effects. However, significant QTcF prolongation and presence of patients with supra-threshold QTc values observed in the intervention arm underscore the importance of further monitoring of QTc parameters in extended artemether-lumefantrine treatment. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03241901. Registered July 27, 2017. https://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT03241901.
| S-EPMC7362422 | biostudies-literature