Reduced inflammation and increased endothelial activation in children with asymptomatic plasmodium falciparum parasitemia in a low transmission area.

Few studies investigate asymptomatic parasitemia (AP) and researching the mechanism by which these children remain healthy can provide novel information to understand the pathogenesis of Plasmodium falciparum malaria. We hypothesized children with AP to have higher levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, angiogenic growth factors, and markers of endothelial activation compared to children without parasitemia. Healthy children were recruited from the community as part of a study on cognitive and neurological deficits in children with central nervous system malaria in Kampala, Uganda. Plasma was prepared from blood samples acquired at enrollment and tested using magnetic bead assay. Nested PCR was performed to detect P. falciparum DNA. Of the 211 community children (CC) samples tested, 73 CC had AP and 138 CC without parasitemia. CC with AP had lower levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines IFN-γ (p