Research Reveals Link Between Malaria and Childhood Cancer

New Delhi, April 25 (NationPress) A team of researchers from the US has revealed the connection between Plasmodium falciparum -- a parasitic protozoan responsible for malaria -- and the onset of Burkitt lymphoma (BL), the most prevalent childhood cancer. Burkitt lymphoma is a cancer that targets B cells, which play a crucial role in the immune system by producing antibodies. This type of cancer has been linked to P. falciparum malaria since 1958, yet the precise mechanism by which this connection leads to cancer has remained elusive.

While Burkitt lymphoma is rare on a global scale, its incidence is significantly higher—by a factor of 10—in regions where P. falciparum malaria is consistently present, particularly in equatorial Africa and New Guinea.

There are five distinct species of Plasmodium known to cause malaria in humans, but only P. falciparum is directly linked to Burkitt lymphoma.

“Understanding that malaria plays a direct role in heightening the risk of childhood cancer suggests that initiatives aimed at diminishing the burden of P. falciparum malaria could also lead to a reduction in Burkitt lymphoma cases,” stated Dr. Rosemary Rochford, a Professor of Immunology and Microbiology at the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine.

The findings, published in The Journal of Immunology, identified a significant increase in the expression of an enzyme called AID (activation-induced cytidine deaminase) in B cells during infections caused by P. falciparum in children.

The research also highlighted that a defining characteristic of Burkitt lymphoma is the translocation of a gene known as MYC, which is a genetic alteration involving the breakage of DNA from one chromosome and its attachment to another.

The presence of the enzyme AID is crucial for MYC translocation, thereby linking its presence in malaria patients to the role of P. falciparum in Burkitt lymphoma, according to the research team.

For their study, the researchers evaluated blood samples from children with uncomplicated malaria for levels of AID and compared these with samples from children without malaria.

Uncomplicated malaria refers to cases where symptoms are non-specific, such as fever, chills, sweating, headaches, nausea, and/or vomiting, without evidence of severe organ dysfunction.

Levels of AID were found to be significantly elevated and fully functional in the B cells of children suffering from uncomplicated malaria. This functional excess of AID further substantiates the involvement of P. falciparum in the development of Burkitt lymphoma.

“This research contributes to the growing body of literature emphasizing the significant role of the enzyme AID in the etiology of Burkitt lymphoma and potentially in other forms of non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas,” added Rochford.