Researchers at the Welcome Trust- Mahosot Hospital-Oxford University Tropical Medicine Research Collaboration have published a worrying report in the Malaria Journal highlighting the fact that fraudulent anti-malarials will impact hugely on mortality rates over the next year if action is not taken soon.

These fake, and in some cases, poor quality drugs, are entering the system all over the world but the problem is especially significant on the African continent at the moment. Between criminal activity and bad manufacturing standards and practices, it is unlikely patients will continue to benefit from the first line treatments since they are developing a resistance to treatment due to the quality of drugs available.

In order to ascertain how much fake treatment and poor quality treatments were out there, researchers collected data from 11 African nations between 2002 and 2010. They discovered that counterfeit drugs contained a number of active ingredients but they only treated the symptoms of malaria and not the disease itself. It was also discovered that the ingredients used had the potential to cause harmful side effects, especially when taken with other prescription treatments. Because these drugs contain minute amounts of artemisinin, one of the most frequently used treatments in Africa, but only enough so that the manufacturers pass validity tests. Patients taking the drugs will eventually develop a resistance to the bona fide treatments if the parasite is only exposed to small quantities of the active ingredient.

The leader of this research suggests that African regulatory authorities begin to increase their investments in quality control so that only the best quality treatments are available at affordable prices.

A new study carried out on female mosquitos and mating has revealed some exciting results.  According to the study’s authors, female mosquitos do not know if their mates are infertile and furthermore, do not pursue future mates despite having not been fertilised. A particular species, known as the anopheles gambiae, were observed and are the species responsible for most of the cases of malaria transmission in Africa.

The female of this species will only mate once in her life so this means that if she has mated with an infertile partner, she will not go on to mate again and therefore miss out on her opportunity to have her eggs fertilised.

The researchers at the University of Oxford’s Department of Zoology looked at 100 males who had no sperm. In order to produce these males they injected eggs with a protein that inhibited the development of the testes. They were therefore unable to produce sperm later in life.

These male adults were coupled with females and their physiology and behaviour observed. Females that had mated with an infertile male did not search for another mate again thereafter. This is an exciting study that takes us closer to the possibility of one day controlling the mosquito population and reduce the incidence of malaria.

An increasing number of travellers around Britain are not taking ant-malarias before travelling to malaria endemic regions. The announcement comes from the UK Health Protection Agency (HPA) that says that the number of UK travellers contracting malaria has increased by 30% over a 2 year period.

Some travellers think that if they have had malaria once that they cannot have it again however this is not the case according to a HPA spokesperson. With so much research being carried out on malaria prevention and treatment it is shocking that people are not taking the necessary precautions. Malaria is potentially life threatening but easy to prevent and antimalarial drugs can be prescribed by The Online Clinic for next day delivery.

A Canadian research team and a Californian research team have made a breakthrough discovery for the future of malaria treatment.  The Canadian team discovered an easier way to harvest the chemical, artemisinin, which is notoriously difficult to obtain but which is now a key ingredient in modern anti-malaria medications. The other team discovered a new precursor to artemisinin and when both teams met, they made an invaluable discovery.

Artemisinin is usually extracted from the sweet wormwood plant in a laborious and time-consuming process. The Canadian scientists exposed the genetic information of wormwood plant that produces the protein which goes on to make artemisinin.

Simultaneously, researchers at UC, Berkley, developed a precursor to artemisinin when chemicals were mixed with yeast. The Canadian group suggested that their genes would be mixed with the compound created at Berkley and sure enough when two of the genes were mixed with the yeast compound they found that the production of artemisinin had doubled.

The companies are preparing to increase production and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has provided financial backing and this will ensure that no profit will be made from the drug in developing communities. This yeast- fermentation method will ensure prices remain low and the supply plentiful as the process of making artemisinin will be much easier and much quicker than before and will not have to rely on weather conditions and soil fertility.

A subspecies of mosquito, the Goundry, has been discovered and named after the area in which it was found. The insect, which has proven itself as highly susceptible to the malaria parasite favours the outdoors and is yet another challenge facing scientists in the battle against malaria, which kills nearly one million people every year.

Unlike other mosquitoes that prefer to rest indoors, the Goundry prefers open spaces so regular methods of prevention such as nets and sprays cannot be put in place. Mosquitoes that stay outdoors are extremely difficult to catch or even trap for experimentation. The only option for scientists now is to capture the mosquito in its larval stage and observe its feeding habits in order to estimate the threat this subspecies may pose.

Nearly half of the world’s population live in malaria endemic regions.

Doctors are warning travellers to take care when travelling to malaria endemic regions and to be prepared. The warnings follow the treatment of 3 UK malaria sufferers in one week who had taken holidays in Western Africa. Each patient had arranged their holiday with the same travel website and received no medical information regarding anti-malarials or other preventative measures before they departed.

Each patient contracted falciparum malaria- the most virulent type of malaria. The UK travel trade association have been informed of the various websites promoting travel in such areas without providing the appropriate medical advice.

There are certain types of malaria tablets that need to be taken a number of weeks before departure so preparation is key. Travellers are being exploited by the agencies and websites and lured into making hasty holiday plans because of attractive last minute deals.

The recommendation is to follow Foreign and Commonwealth Office advice. Malarone and other anti-malarials are available on prescription. Malarone only needs to be taken 1 to 2 days before travelling and for seven days after one has departed from the malaria zone. Malarone is specifically convenient for these last minute trips to high risk areas.

The malaria parasite is not discriminating in who it infects as Piers Morgan tweeted earlier today; unfortunately he wasn’t entirely accurate with his facts.

Having just taken over from Larry King on CNN, Piers Morgan is difficult to escape if you’re living in the States. He is also a prolific tweeter and yesterday managed to cause a hoopla when he posted the following "BREAKING NEWS: George Clooney has contracted malaria following recent trip to Sudan”.

The trouble was that although the Hollywood A Lister had indeed contracted malaria on a trip to Africa, he had done so in January and was completely over the illness.

Clooney’s representative managed to make an important point, however, when he spoke about the actor’s recovery "This illustrates how with proper medication, the most lethal condition in Africa, can be reduced to a bad ten days instead of a death sentence."

The phase II clinical trials for the malaria vaccine that we have been discussing have produced positive results. The vaccine targets P. falciparum, only one of the fours species of malaria parasite that affect humans but this is the only type of malaria parasite that is potentially life threatening and is most common in Arica.

The vaccine proved to reduce the risk of contracting the infection significantly over a period of 15 months. 447 African children participated in total and their ages ranged between 5 to 17 months. The same number of participants represented the control group who were given a rabies vaccination.

The vaccine attacks the parasite when it first penetrates the blood/ liver cells. This means that there is no time for the red blood cells to become infected. After a period of 15 months, the group vaccinated with the malaria vaccine were 46% less probable to become infected with malaria, than those who had had the rabies vaccination.

Further study will be carried out now in order to assess the success and efficacy of the vaccination in children who are HIV positive or malnourished.

Didier Drogba, the Chelsea footballer, said yesterday that he still had not fully recovered from his bout of Malaria. He suffered with headaches and a fever for a month before he was diagnosed in September last year and although he was immediately treated he was sufficiently debilitated by the virus to still feel that he has not yet fully recovered.

This comes in the week that doctors have released new research about the malaria parasite which shows that it is not as effective at infecting its host if that host has a different body clock.

We reported a few weeks ago that there was an advanced clinical trial to develop a vaccine for the plasmodium falciparum strain of malaria. The very first clinical trial is now taking place for a vaccine against plasmodium vixax malaria in Washington (Walter Reed Army Institute for Research). Plasmodium vivax is one of the most common types of malaria and people involved in the trial are being bitten by infected mosquitos that carry the virus.

The vaccine which boosts the body’s immunity was administered in different doses to 28 volunteer’s months prior to the infection. The mosquitos were then imported from Thailand and infected with the plasmodium vivax strand of malaria and the patients received five bites each to ensure infection.

It will be a week before we know of the success of the trial. The participants are staying at a hotel in Maryland and are being looked after by a medical team there. Rooms have been made into laboratories and clinics for the testing of infected blood. Without these volunteers, vital human testing would not be possible. Although they are paid several thousand dollars for their participation, many of them are taking part in the study with the hope of finding a cure for the disease that infects up to 300 million people every year.

Cheryl Cole’s recent collapse and subsequent diagnosis with malaria made the headlines and projected the illness into the spotlight in a way that had never happened before in the UK.

Now, only a few weeks later, another high profile case of malaria has made the headlines. Didier Drogba, the 32-year-old Chelsea striker complained of feeling unwell at the beginning of October but was only diagnosed as having Malaria this Monday.

The Chelsea manager, Carlo Ancelotti, said that he didn’t know how his player had contracted the tropical disease but Drogba was told that he could have been carrying it for weeks. He began an intensive 48-hour course of medication yesterday.

The footballer had already been tested for malaria and other tropical diseases but the results came back negative: This is not an uncommon occurrence as the parasitic activity in the blood goes up and down on a daily basis and can be affected by anti-malarials. Drogba is soldiering on rather bravely but all the tabloid criticism of Cheryl Cole is misplaced. Any suggestion that Cheryl overplayed her illness is a complete disgrace – malaria kills around a million people in Africa every year and we even have a few deaths in the UK each year when people are not treated for the tropical disease on time.

GlaxoSmithKline is on the cusp of discovering the first effective vaccine for malaria. In its advanced stage of clinical trials now, it has been reported that the vaccine maybe ready for administering in Africa by 2015. The vaccine is being developed to cure falciparum malaria, one of the most fatal forms of malaria and once incurable.

The phase III trials will shortly commence and approximately 12,000 children have already been enrolled with a target of 16,000 participants.

In 2008 in phase II trials, the vaccine was 53% effective in children and in infants the vaccine was up to 65% effective.

This potential new malaria vaccine is therefore said to be at least 50% effective and can last up to one year. The effect on Africa would not only mean the saving of thousands of lives but the vaccine will also bring the continent a step closer to achieving the economic and social development so desperately needed there. All over the world, 900,000 thousand people die from malaria each year so a vaccine is desperately needed.

For further information on this exciting new development, please navigate to Health24.com.

Simon Cowell has said that X-Factor judge Cheryl Cole is recovering well from malaria. He revealed that he had received a message from the popstar, in which she said she was getting better and feeling ‘perky’.

Cole fell ill with the potentially life-threatening disease after a trip to Tanzinia three weeks ago with one of her dancers, Derek Hough, 25.

She was released from the intensive care department of University College Hospital at the start of the weekend and since has checked into a private hospital in London.  The star has been forced to pull out of a string of work commitments, including the ‘bootcamp’ stage of X-Factor and various appearances, such as at the V Festival next month.

Cowell has said he is committed to ensuring that Cole does not return to work before she is ready and has promised to have a conversation with her about it. He also revealed that she is expected to be released from hospital in the next few days.

In the meantime, a host of celebs have put themselves forward to fill Cheryl’s shoes until she returns, including Jordan, who -  despite admitting that she can’t sing  - claims that the fact that she’s ‘still got ears and can still hear things and can see looks’ makes her ideally qualified. While this could make for some fabulous TV, no doubt Simon Cowell is praying that Cole recovers from the malaria before Jordan manages to strong-arm her way onto his set!

Research by Sainsbury’s has shown that British travellers are putting their travel insurance in jeopardy by not informing their insurers of any pre-existing health conditions.

The survey for the supermarket, which sells travel insurance, revealed that more than half a million Brits last year went abroad without disclosing to their travel insurers information about a long-term medical complaint they had. Doing so could potentially invalidate any claim that they subsequently make.

245,000 holidaymakers failed to disclose that they suffered from severe back pain; 110,000 did not ensure that their cover took into account a respiratory condition and 50,000 were not honest about a heart condition.

When questioned about why they did not reveal their full medical history, various reasons cited included a fear that they would be refused cover, a belief that their condition was irrelevant or that it was an embarrassment to them.

Equally disturbing was the news that 8% of people who went abroad this year took out no travel insurance at all! Not getting proper health insurance could mean that travellers get hit with crippling costs should they fall ill abroad so it might save a few pounds before you travel but think about being hit with a $25,000 U.S. hospital bill like one of my very careless friends was last year. Not feeling so clever now Mr!

You have probably already heard the news that Cheryl Cole has contracted malaria while she was holidaying in Tanzania. We have heard that she did take some form of preventative treatment but did not start the medication prior to arriving in Tanzania.

It is necessary to take an appropriate medication for the malaria that is present in the region being visited. Malarone would have been an appropriate treatment for Tanzania and unlike most malaria treatments (which have to be started a few weeks before travel) this one can be taken a day or two before you set out on your trip but it must be continued for one week after you return.

The UK has the largest number of people who import malaria back into the UK after a holiday than anywhere else in the industrialized world. Malaria can be fatal but it usually responds to medication and there are only a few fatalities in the UK each year. Having said that, it is not a nice disease to have and it is so easy to prevent.

The Online Clinic established an anti-malaria service a few weeks ago to make it easier for people to access the sort of treatment that they need for their trip. The unfortunate incident involving the much loved Cheryl Cole simply serves to highlight the need to take precautions when travelling to malarious regions.

British travellers have been advised to speak to their own doctors before travelling, rather than relying on the advice of friends or relatives.

TV doctor Pixie McKenna has urged people to speak to their doctor 6 to 8 weeks before they travel, to make sure that they are taking the right precautions for their trip. This could ensure that travellers are protected against malaria if they travel to an area where it is present, or know how to reduce their chances of developing the dreaded stomach flu.

She warned that many travellers still believe myths and old wives tales about staying healthy abroad, such as the old colonial myth that drinking gin and tonic protects against malaria and that dogs with Rabies look unfriendly.

She spoke out as part of a new initiative called 8 Weeks to Go, which is designed to raise awareness amongst holidaymakers of the steps they need to take to protect themselves while abroad.  The campaign is funded by GlaxoSmithKline’s Travel Health and supported by the NHS’ Fit for Travel program and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Organisers of the campaign say that 1 in every 2 travellers has fallen ill or hurt themselves while abroad and have warned that Brits are some of the biggest importers of malaria in the world.

The Foreign Office is also urging people to make sure they have travel insurance in place before they go abroad, as the costs of falling ill overseas can be astronomical if you are not prepared.

Andy Murray is starring in a new advert to highlight the dangers of malaria and the importance of using mosquito nets. He has agreed to help out the charity, Malaria No More UK, which campaigns to raise awareness about the potentially life-threatening disease. The charity, founded in 2009 and supported by footballer David Beckham, has a pledge that every penny donated by the public to them is spent directly on the ground in Africa to support prevention and treatment programs.

The advert will feature the tennis champ building up for a smash serve, only to stop when he realises there is no net. As he waits for someone to bring a net, he is then shown performing a few flashy moves.

He has said that he wanted to take part in the advert as, though the disease is preventable, it still claims the lives of 2,000 people each day in Africa. The dead are largely children, as they have not had time to build up immunity to the disease.

Those travelling to areas where malaria is present are particularly vulnerable to infection. Travellers are recommended to take anti-malarial medication during their trip to protect them and to always sleep under mosquito nets. However, though mosquito nets are relatively cheap for those in the West, many in Africa are forced by their price to go without.

AIDs groups in South Africa have claimed that FIFA is stalling over making condoms available to football fans, putting at risk many travellers unaware of the AIDS epidemic ravaging the country.

South Africa has the world’s largest number of people carrying HIV, with estimates putting the number of South Africans infected at 5.7 million. Every day, there are 1,400 new infections.

The huge influx of tourists that the world cup will bring – and it is well know that tourists are more likely to drink and engage in risky sexual behaviour – means that sexual health needs to be a priority, to ensure that the supporters do not contract the disease while on holiday.

However according to a group of AIDS charities, Fifa’s tight regulations on advertising, which ensure that only official sponsors can be shown inside the stadium, mean that fans are not going to be given condoms or sufficient advice on sexual health.mThis is despite the South African government making 71 million condoms available, with a further 65million held in reserve.

The organisations, which include the AIDS Consortium and Treatment Action Campaign, say that FIFA has ignored their demands for an urgent meeting to discuss their concerns; though FIFA says that it is unaware of any such request.

FIFA has been especially criticized for welcoming advertising for alcohol, while stymying efforts to protect football fans against HIV.