Human African Trypanosomiasis

Awakening to new drugs against sleeping sickness

Sleeping sickness kills tens of thousands of people in Africa each year. Current chemotherapies are subject to various limitations, including resistance. Rhodesain, an enzyme of the parasites that cause this ...

Cancer created May 17, 2013 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Gene clue to drug resistance in African sleeping sickness

(Medical Xpress) -- Researchers have identified a gene that controls susceptibility to drug treatment in Trypanosoma brucei, the parasite responsible for African sleeping sickness.

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Jun 19, 2012 | popularity 3 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Scientists take a step towards better sleeping sickness treatment

(Medical Xpress) -- Scientists at the University of Glasgow have taken a major step forward in the quest to develop new, safer drugs for the treatment of sleeping sickness.

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Old drug shows new promise to treat leishmaniasis

(Medical Xpress) -- A study published yesterday shows that a drug called fexinidazole could potentially be used to treat visceral leishmaniasis, a parasitic disease that kills 50 000 to 60 000 people ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Feb 02, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Genetic technique brings new hope for better treatments for sleeping sickness

Research led by scientists at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine has exploited a revolutionary genetic technique to discover how human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT) drugs target the parasite which causes the ...

Genetics created Jan 25, 2012 | popularity 2 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Wild animals may contribute to the resurgence of African sleeping sickness

Wild animals may be a key contributor to the continuing spread of African sleeping sickness, new research published in PLOS Computational Biology shows. The West African form of the disease, also known as Gambiense Human ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Jan 17, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

New oral drug candidate for African sleeping sickness

A new oral-only treatment for sleeping sickness has entered Phase II/III clinical study in patients with late-stage sleeping sickness in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and soon in Central African Republic (CAR). ...

Medications created Dec 06, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Neglected tropical diseases: A new handle on old problems

‘Neglected tropical diseases’ is a new name for old diseases that cause long-term suffering among the world’s poorest people. The Wellcome Trust and others have funded research into these diseases ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Jan 06, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Major advance in sleeping sickness drug made by Glasgow scientists

A new study published in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases on September 6th presents a key advance in developing a safer cure for sleeping sickness. Led by Professor Peter Kennedy, researchers at the ...

Medical research created Sep 06, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Open access initiative reveals drug hits for deadly neglected tropical diseases

The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) and Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) announce today the identification of three chemical series targeting the treatment of deadly neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), through ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Nov 13, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

First field-based molecular diagnostic test for African sleeping sickness in sight

The Geneva-based not-for-profit foundation FIND and Japanese diagnostics company Eiken announced today that a next-generation molecular test designed specifically for sleeping sickness – a deadly parasitic disease also ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes created Sep 15, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0


Human African trypanosomiasis, sleeping sickness, African lethargy, or Congo trypanosomiasis is a parasitic disease of people and animals, caused by protozoa of the species Trypanosoma brucei and transmitted by the tsetse fly. The disease is endemic in some regions of sub-Saharan Africa, covering about 37 countries and 60 million people. It is estimated that 50,000 to 70,000 people are currently infected, the number having declined somewhat in recent years. The number of reported cases was below 10,000 in 2009, the first time in 50 years. It is believed that many cases go unreported. About 48,000 people died of it in 2008. Four major epidemics have occurred in recent history: one from 1896–1906 primarily in Uganda and the Congo Basin, two epidemics in 1920 and 1970 in several African countries, and a recent 2008 epidemic in Uganda.

This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.

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