# Surveillance to track and characterize antimalarial resistance trends in Ugandan Plasmodium falciparum parasites (STARTUP)

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · 2024 · $766,070

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT:
New studies in Uganda and Rwanda have reported increasing prevalence of mutations in pfkelch13 (K13)
associated with delayed parasite clearance following clinical or in vitro treatment with artemisinins, suggesting
that fears that resistance of Plasmodium falciparum to artemisinins will emerge in Africa, where >90% of
malaria cases and deaths occur, have been realized. However, the extent of resistance to components of
artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) is not well understood. Our ongoing research activities and
well-established infrastructure in Uganda put us in a unique position to rapidly address urgent needs for
improved surveillance and characterization of resistance to artemisinins and partner drugs in Uganda.
Benefitting from a network of 80 surveillance sites across the country and modern laboratories in Kampala and
Tororo, we will use molecular, parasitological and epidemiological approaches a) to evaluate the origins,
prevalence and distribution of known markers of artemisinin and ACT partner drug resistance and to
characterize the genetic background(s) that facilitate the establishment and spread of resistance phenotypes,
b) assess associations between genotypes and drug susceptibility/fitness phenotypes, and c) assess
ecological and epidemiological factors that facilitate the evolution of resistance. With resistance to important
drugs still geographically focal, our goal is to identify key drivers of its emergence and spread, and then to
promptly inform public health leaders on the best means of blunting the spread of resistance across Africa.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10756131
- **Project number:** 5R01AI173557-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO
- **Principal Investigator:** Melissa D Conrad
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $766,070
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-12-20 → 2027-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10756131

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10756131, Surveillance to track and characterize antimalarial resistance trends in Ugandan Plasmodium falciparum parasites (STARTUP) (5R01AI173557-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10756131. Licensed CC0.

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