What is chloroquine resistance?

Category: medical health infectious diseases
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Resistance to chloroquine of malaria strains is known to be associated with a parasite protein named PfCRT, the mutated form of which is able to reduce chloroquine accumulation in the digestive vacuole of the pathogen.



Similarly one may ask, what is chloroquine resistant malaria?

Chloroquine-resistant malaria. falciparum, the cause of the most lethal human malaria, chloroquine resistance is linked to multiple mutations in PfCRT, a protein that likely functions as a transporter in the parasite's digestive vacuole membrane.

Also, what is the mechanism of action of chloroquine? The major action of chloroquine is to inhibit the formation of hemozoin (Hz) from the heme released by the digestion of hemoglobin (Hb). The free heme then lyses membranes and leads to parasite death. Chloroquine resistance is due to a decreased accumulation of chloroquine in the food vacuole.

Beside above, what is drug resistance in malaria?

Antimalarial drug resistance In the 1970s and 1980s, Plasmodium falciparum – the parasite species responsible for the most common and most deadly form of malaria – developed widespread resistance to previous antimalarial medicines, such as chloroquine and sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP).

How do parasites become resistant to drugs?

After an animal is treated with an antiparasitic drug, the susceptible parasites die and the resistant parasites survive to pass on resistance genes to their offspring.

33 Related Question Answers Found

What are the side effects of chloroquine?

Side effects from chloroquine phosphate can occur. Tell your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away:
  • headache.
  • loss of appetite.
  • diarrhea.
  • upset stomach.
  • stomach pain.
  • skin rash or itching.
  • hair loss.
  • mood or mental changes.

Is chloroquine still used to treat malaria?

Chloroquine is still the drug of choice for sensitive malaria parasites although ACTs are used increasingly. Chloroquine is therefore used widely for P. vivax, P. malariae and P.

What causes malaria resistance?

Several factors influence the emergence and spread of drug resistant malaria parasites, including the number of parasites exposed to a drug, the drug concentration to which the parasites are exposed, and the simultaneous presence of other antimalarials in the blood to which the parasite is not resistant.

How is chloroquine made?

Chloroquine, 7-chloro-4-(4-diethylamino-1-methylbutylamino)-quinoline (37.1. 3), is made by reacting 4,7-dichloroquinoline (37.1. 1.4), which then undergoes high-temperature heterocyclization to make the ethyl ester of 7-chloro-4-hydroxyquinolin-3-carboxylic acid (37.1. 1.5).

Are antimalarials antibiotics?


Probably one of the more prevalent antimalarial drugs prescribed, due to its relative effectiveness and cheapness, doxycycline is a tetracycline compound derived from oxytetracycline. The tetracyclines were one of the earliest groups of antibiotics to be developed and are still used widely in many types of infection.

Where is chloroquine effective?

There are only a few places left in the world where chloroquine is still effective including parts of Central America and the Caribbean. CDC keeps track of all the places in the world where malaria transmission occurs and which malaria drugs that are recommended for use in each place.

Can you become resistant to malaria?

Naturally acquired immunity to falciparum malaria protects millions of people routinely exposed to Plasmodium falciparum infection from severe disease and death. There is no clear concept about how this protection works. Even the immunity that occurs in exposed infants may exceed 90% effectiveness.

What is the best treatment for malaria?

The most common antimalarial drugs include:
  • Artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs). ACTs are, in many cases, the first line treatment for malaria. There are several different types of ACTs.
  • Chloroquine phosphate. Chloroquine is the preferred treatment for any parasite that is sensitive to the drug.

How do antimalarial drugs work?

Antimalarial medication works by killing the malaria parasites during their development stage in the liver and red blood cells. Continuing to take antimalarial medication after leaving the risk area will prevent the parasites from establishing themselves. There are five species of human malaria parasites: P.

What does drug resistance mean?


Drug resistance is the reduction in effectiveness of a medication such as an antimicrobial or an antineoplastic in treating a disease or condition. When an organism is resistant to more than one drug, it is said to be multidrug-resistant.

What are the negative effects of chloroquine?

Side Effects. Blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, headache, and diarrhea may occur. If any of these effects persist or worsen, tell your doctor or pharmacist promptly.

What type of mutation is malaria resistance?

The sickle-cell allele is widely known as a variant that causes red blood cells to be deformed into a sickle shape when deoxygenated in AS heterozygotes, in which A indicates the non-mutant form of the β-globin gene, and also provides resistance to malaria in AS heterozygotes.

What drugs are used to prevent malaria?

Atovaquone/proguanil (Malarone), doxycycline, and mefloquine are the drugs of choice for malaria prevention in most malaria-endemic regions. Chloroquine (Aralen) may be used safely in all trimesters of pregnancy, and mefloquine may be used safely in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy.

What antibiotics are used to treat malaria?

Quinine (Qualaquin)
Quinine is used for malaria treatment only; it has no role in prophylaxis. It is used with a second agent in drug-resistant P falciparum. For drug-resistant parasites, the second agent is doxycycline, tetracycline, pyrimethamine sulfadoxine, or clindamycin.

Does malaria ever go away?


With proper treatment, symptoms of malaria usually go away quickly, with a cure within two weeks. Without proper treatment, malaria episodes (fever, chills, sweating) can return periodically over a period of years. After repeated exposure, patients will become partially immune and develop milder disease.

What are antimalarial drugs used for?

Antimalarial drugs are used for the treatment and prevention of malaria infection. Most antimalarial drugs target the erythrocytic stage of malaria infection, which is the phase of infection that causes symptomatic illness (figure 1).

Is malaria treated with fungicides?

Drugs that kill the parasite that causes malaria can be used to treat and prevent the disease. ACT is currently the front-line treatment for Plasmodium falciparum malaria. If any parasites are left in the body after treatment, the disease may return.