Background:
Malaria is a serious infection caused by a parasite. People get malaria when an infected mosquito bites them. Malaria can cause major health and social problems in places were malaria is common, such as Africa but can also affect travelers who have never been exposed to malaria. Researchers at the NIH want to find a safe and effective malaria vaccine, antimalarial drugs, or prevention regimen. To do this, healthy volunteers are recruited under a general screening study in order to see if are qualified to join a future malaria study.
Objective:
To screen healthy volunteers to see if they are eligible to join investigational malaria studies. The studies will be trials of investigational antimalarial drugs, malaria vaccines, or prevention regimens. They may also involve controlled human malaria infection trials.
Eligibility:
Healthy people ages 18 50
Design:
Participants will first be prescreened by phone.
Participants will be screened with:
Medical history
Physical exam
Blood and urine tests
Participants may go more than 1 year without joining a clinical trial. If this happens, they may be re-contacted to see if they still want to be part of this screening protocol. Those who still want to participate and have had relevant medical changes will be rescreened.
Age >= 18 and <= 50 years.
In good general health and without clinically significant medical history
Reliable access to the clinical trial center and available in the area for more than 1 year
Females of childbearing potential must be willing to undergo periodic pregnancy testing and use reliable contraception per protocol when enrolled into LMIV clinical trials (protocol-specific requirements)
Pregnant, breastfeeding, or planned pregnancy in the upcoming year.
Hemoglobin, white blood cell (WBC), platelets, alanine transaminase (ALT), and creatinine (Cr) outside of local lab normal range (subjects may be included at the investigator's discretion for "not clinically significant" values outside of normal range).
Investigational malaria vaccine within the last five years
Chronic systemic immunosuppressive medications (e.g., cytotoxic medications, oral/parental corticosteroids > 0.5 mg/kg/day prednisone or equivalent). Corticosteroid nasal spray for allergic rhinitis and topical corticosteroids for mild, uncomplicated dermatitis is allowed.