EXTENDED: AI-Driven Malaria Control – Neural Networks and the Task-Shifting of Vector Surveillance (with Soumya Acharya and Sunny Patel)
Release Date: 04/22/2025
EXTENDED: Why Malaria Vaccines May Work Better in Some Places Than Others (with Lemu Golassa)
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
The extent to which malaria vaccines reduce cases and deaths is a key consideration. But there’s another factor, too. with Dr. Lemu Golassa, Head of Medical Parasitology at Addis Ababa University. About The Podcast The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.
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Mismatch Between Malaria Vaccines and Local Parasite Strains in Ethiopia
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
A recent study in Ethiopia reveals that local malaria parasite strains differ genetically from those targeted by current vaccines, potentially reducing their effectiveness. Transcript The recent introduction of two malaria vaccines in sub-Saharan Africa represents a major success in global health, and the culmination of decades of research and development. The two jabs – RTS,S and R21 – target a protein on the surface of the malaria parasite as it enters the skin, called the circumsporozoite protein, or CSP. The vaccines are based on a specific form of CSP. The challenge is that there are...
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Malaria Advocacy on Capitol Hill: Funding, Research, and Global Impact
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
The podcast explores the importance of advocacy for malaria research and control. It follows over 120 advocates gathering in Washington, DC, as part of the ‘United to Beat Malaria’ campaign, urging Congress to continue supporting global malaria efforts. Key topics include: The US President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), founded in 2005, which provides bed nets, test kits, and treatments to combat malaria The role of global partnerships, including the Global Fund, in distributing resources efficiently. How Uganda’s malaria response is supported by international funding for the...
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EXTENDED: AI-Driven Malaria Control – Neural Networks and the Task-Shifting of Vector Surveillance (with Soumya Acharya and Sunny Patel)
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
With a shortage of entomologists in malaria-endemic regions, could AI fill the gap? We explore VectorCam, an offline tool powered by a Convolutional Neural Network that aims to support local vector surveillance. with Dr. Soumya Acharya and Sunny Patel of Johns Hopkins University. About The Podcast The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.
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VectorCAM: The AI Tool Improving Mosquito Detection
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
Can AI identify mosquito species? VectorCAM, a pocket-sized device, uses machine learning to differentiate species with 95% accuracy, enhancing malaria surveillance efforts Transcript Not all mosquitoes are created equal. Of the more than three thousand species, only a limited number of the Anopheles genus can transmit malaria. Even within that subset, subtle physiological differences affect how malaria spreads. Some mosquitoes prefer to bite indoors, while others outdoors. Some need large bodies of water to breed, while others only need a small puddle. Distinguishing these species is...
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EXTENDED: Could a Juice Pouch Revolutionize Mosquito Control? (with George Dimopoulos)
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
For decades, insecticides have shielded us from malaria—but cracks are showing. Resistance is spreading, and environmental concerns are growing. Could a simple pouch of fruit juice with a powerful secret be the breakthrough we need? with George Dimopoulos of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute About The Podcast The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.
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Fighting Malaria with Soil Bacteria
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
One of the main ways of controlling malaria is to reduce mosquito populations through insecticides. But the mosquitoes are developing resistance, making most insecticides less effective. What if the answer lies beneath our feet? Transcript One of the main ways of controlling malaria is to reduce mosquito populations through insecticides. But the mosquitoes are developing resistance, making most insecticides less effective. We need new vector control interventions – what if the answer lies beneath our feet? Researchers from the Dimopoulos Group at the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute...
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EXTENDED: Mapping Social Networks to Strengthen Malaria Prevention (with András Vörös and Elisa Bellotti)
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
The prevention of malaria depends upon multiple layers of interventions that work together to reduce cases and deaths. But what makes someone decide to sleep under a bed net, or apply an insecticidal cream? What makes one person take up more interventions than another? How influential are government-accredited health experts versus friends and family? With András Vörös, an Associate Professor in Quantitative Methods at the University of Birmingham and Elisa Bellotti, a Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Manchester. About The Podcast The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is...
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How Conversations Shape Malaria Prevention Practices
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
Malaria prevention depends on the adoption of multiple behaviors – like sleeping under a bednet and wearing clothes that cover the skin. Researchers find that conversations with people in one’s own social circle are the strongest factors that influence behavior uptake. Transcript Malaria prevention depends on the adoption of multiple behaviors – like sleeping under a bednet and wearing clothes that cover the skin – to reduce exposure to infectious mosquitoes. Theories of ‘social influence’ are often used to explain the uptake of single behaviors, in which an...
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EXTENDED: Discovering New Targets for Malaria Vaccines and Monoclonal Antibodies (with Joshua Tan)
Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute
Today, the discovery of antibodies targeting a new region of the malaria parasite that could serve as a promising target for drugs and vaccines.
info_outlineWith a shortage of entomologists in malaria-endemic regions, could AI fill the gap? We explore VectorCam, an offline tool powered by a Convolutional Neural Network that aims to support local vector surveillance.
with Dr. Soumya Acharya and Sunny Patel of Johns Hopkins University.
About The Podcast
The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and to share it with the global community.