The body learns to fight what it has seen before in most cases. This is how our immune system is built up and the basic principle of immunization. Preparing before the day of reckoning.<\/p>\n
We are able to stand against malaria because we encounter the parasite on virtually daily basis at a dose that cannot cause infection. This means that, staying away from exposure to malaria parasites for a period usually more than 6 months might make you almost as naive as someone who has never had an exposure. Meaning, you are like to be seriously attacked by malaria just like how a person who does not live in a malaria endemic area.<\/p>\n
In one of my experiments outside Ghana, I needed blood from a person who has antibodies to malaria parasites to use as control. I had just been away from Ghana for 1 month. So I asked the team not to look any further and volunteered. To my surprise, my level of antibodies was no different from a group of people considered to be coming from non-malaria endemic area.<\/p>\n
There are people living in malaria endemic areas that do not get exposed to malaria parasites because of the environment in which they live. Such people are likely to go down quick with malaria and possible die if interventions delay.<\/p>\n