Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34565410›Full record

ArticleMalaria journal2021

Transcriptome-based analysis of blood samples reveals elevation of DNA damage response, neutrophil degranulation, cancer and neurodegenerative pathways in Plasmodium falciparum patients.

Akua A Karikari, Wasco Wruck, James Adjaye

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Malaria journal, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.8field-weighted citation impact, top 25% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Akua A Karikari *Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Health and Allied Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0259-7168
Wasco Wruck *Institute for Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine, Medical Faculty, Heinrich-Heine University, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9153-7051
James AdjayeInstitute for Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine, Medical Faculty, Heinrich-Heine University, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany. james.adjaye@med.uni-duesseldorf.de.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6075-6761
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf · DEUniversity of Cape Coast · GH

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMalaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum results in severe complications including cerebral malaria (CM) especially in children. While the majority of falciparum malaria survivors make a full recovery, there are reports of some patients ending up with neurological sequelae or cognitive deficit.

methodsAn analysis of pooled transcriptome data of whole blood samples derived from two studies involving various P. falciparum infections, comprising mild malaria (MM), non-cerebral severe malaria (NCM) and CM was performed. Pathways and gene ontologies (GOs) elevated in the distinct P. falciparum infections were determined.

resultsIn all, 2876 genes were expressed in common between the 3 forms of falciparum malaria, with CM having the least number of expressed genes. In contrast to other research findings, the analysis from this study showed MM share similar biological processes with cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, NCM is associated with drug resistance and glutathione metabolism and CM is correlated with endocannabinoid signalling and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). GO revealed the terms biogenesis, DNA damage response and IL-10 production in MM, down-regulation of cytoskeletal organization and amyloid-beta clearance in NCM and aberrant signalling, neutrophil degranulation and gene repression in CM. Differential gene expression analysis between CM and NCM showed the up-regulation of neutrophil activation and response to herbicides, while regulation of axon diameter was down-regulated in CM.

conclusionsResults from this study reveal that P. falciparum-mediated inflammatory and cellular stress mechanisms may impair brain function in MM, NCM and CM. However, the neurological deficits predominantly reported in CM cases could be attributed to the down-regulation of various genes involved in cellular function through transcriptional repression, axonal dysfunction, dysregulation of signalling pathways and neurodegeneration. It is anticipated that the data from this study, might form the basis for future hypothesis-driven malaria research.

Indexed as

Cell DegranulationDNA DamageTranscriptomeDried Blood Spot TestingMalaria, FalciparumNeoplasmsNeurodegenerative DiseasesNeutrophilsPlasmodium falciparumAxonal dysfunctionCellular stressCerebral malariaImmune responseNeutrophil degranulationP. falciparum

Identifiers

PMID34565410
PMCPMC8474955
OpenAlexW3202477356

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.