title: Antibodies to voltage-gated calcium channels in children with falciparum malaria.
abstract: Falciparum malaria can affect the central nervous system (CNS), causing neurological dysfunction and sequelae. The pathophysiology of these complications is currently very poorly understood. Production of autoantibodies has frequently been reported as a consequence of infection with Plasmodium falciparum. However, at present, the presence of antibodies to components of the CNS during malaria infection has not been reported. We have sought to identify such antibodies, define their specificity, and determine whether they are involved in the development of neurological complications of falciparum malaria. Here, we show that, in a cohort of Kenyan children, levels of antibodies to the voltage-gated calcium channels, but not to other ion channels, increased with the severity of malaria infection.
authors.affiliation: Neurosciences, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DS, UK. blang@hammer.imm.ox.ac.uk
authors.forename: Bethan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lang
authors.forename: Christopher I
authors.initials: CI
authors.lastname: Newbold
authors.forename: Graham
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Norbert
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Peshu
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Marsh
authors.forename: Charles R J C
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Newton
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D015220:Calcium Channels / Q000276:immunology*; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D006801:Humans; D007630:Kenya; D016779:Malaria, Cerebral / Q000276:immunology*; D016778:Malaria, Falciparum / Q000276:immunology*; D018512:Parasitemia; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D015220:Calcium Channels