Parasites are organisms existing in or on another living thing from which they obtain nutrients and which they cause harm.
Detailed description
Parasites include animals, plants, fungi or bacteria. They are detrimental to their hosts as they obtain their energy from them but also because they may release toxins and harm the host mechanically by damaging skin and tissue. Examples for parasitic organisms are lice, tapeworms and the malariapathogenPlasmodium.
Worms and other parasites cause numerous and widespread tropical diseases which are largely overlooked. At the DZIF, research teams are focused on fighting these diseases. Since August 2020
Malaria continues to account for approximately half a million deaths each year. Children in highly endemic regions in Africa are the most severely affected. To date, an effective vaccine against malaria does not exist. In Tübingen, a vaccination approach which leads to full immunity against malaria ...
Each year, over 200 million people worldwide contract malaria. The malaria pathogens, called plasmodia, are transmitted by mosquitoes and pass through different stages of development in the liver and red blood cells. Humans develop immunity against the disease after having been routinely exposed to ...
A Microscopy Unit was established at the Heidelberg Partner Site for research groups from the research field “Hepatitis” and other research fields including “Emerging Viruses” in particular. The Microscopy Unit enables research groups to conduct their analyses and investigate live cells and tissues ...
Currently, approximately one billion people worldwide are at risk of developing an inability to work or blindness, becoming maimed or dying due to neglected tropical diseases (NTD). NTDs include river blindness, dengue fever, sleeping sickness, snakebites and leprosy, only to name a few known ...
United against Infections Infectious diseases, such as AIDS, bacterial respiratory diseases or tuberculosis, are among the leading causes of death worldwide. They are triggered by a variety of
This year, the Memento Research Award for neglected diseases goes to Professor Jürgen May from the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) in Hamburg. The jury honours his longstanding
