# Environmental Modifications in sub-Saharan Africa: Changing Epidemiology, Transmission and Pathogenesis of Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax Malaria

> **NIH NIH U19** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · 2020 · $2,090,612

## Abstract

Environmental Modifications in sub-Saharan Africa: Changing Epidemiology,
Transmission and Pathogenesis of Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax Malaria
PROGRAM SUMMARY
Chronic hunger, food insecurity and famine continue to affect millions of residents of sub-
Saharan Africa. Most people in African countries depend on rain-fed agriculture, making
these populations vulnerable to drought and famine. Construction of dams and initiating rural
irrigation schemes has been widely recognized as key solutions to food security and
economic growth in drought prone regions. In the past decade, sub-Saharan African
countries have experienced a new era of large dam constructions and expansion of irrigated
agricultural farms. These environmental changes may have unforeseen ecologic
consequences that adversely affect human health. However, to date there has been limited
basic or translational research to evaluate the impact of water resource development and
shifting agricultural practices on malaria ecosystems and attendant changes in the
epidemiology, transmission, and pathogenesis of malaria. To address the major knowledge
gaps and challenges in malaria control and elimination in the face of drastic environmental
modifications in sub-Saharan Africa, our ICEMR established a consortium with outstanding
institutions and investigators from the US, Australia, Kenya and Ethiopia to study scientific
questions important to the global malaria control and elimination effort, especially to the
countries in the Greater Horn of Africa. The overarching goal of this ICEMR project is to
assess the impact of human-induced environmental modifications such as dam
construction, irrigation and shifting agricultural practices on the epidemiology,
transmission, pathogenesis and immunology of Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax
malaria in highly populated Kenya and Ethiopia where major investments in water
resource development projects are taking place. The ICEMR has three projects, each
with multiple specific objectives. Project 1 will assess the impact of environmental
modifications from water resource development projects on P. falciparum and P. vivax
malaria epidemiology at the molecular, individual, field and population levels. Project 2 will
examine the impact of environmental modifications on vector ecology and transmission, the
outcomes of which will inform new integrated vector control approaches. Project 3 aims to
determine the impact of environmental modifications on malaria pathogenesis and immunity
by elucidating the immune mechanisms underlying susceptibility to symptomatic malaria and
evaluating humoral immunity to gametocytes. The administrative and data management
cores will provide support to the entire program. Knowledge gained from this ICEMR is
important to malaria control, not only for the two study countries studied, but also to
other regions of Africa prone to drought, famine, and large scale human population
movement.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9898151
- **Project number:** 5U19AI129326-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Guiyun Yan
- **Activity code:** U19 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $2,090,612
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-04-15 → 2024-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9898151

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9898151, Environmental Modifications in sub-Saharan Africa: Changing Epidemiology, Transmission and Pathogenesis of Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax Malaria (5U19AI129326-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9898151. Licensed CC0.

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