Magnetic properties of Plasmodium infected erythrocytes: characterization and applications

[Trucated abstract] Malaria is still a major health problem in developing tropical and subtropical countries and claims hundreds of thousands of lives every year. Recently, efforts to contain, rollback, eliminate and eventually eradicate the disease have experienced levels of support and commitment which have not been seen since the anti‐malaria campaigns that started in the middle of the 20th century. The failure of these campaigns to eliminate malaria also resulted in a rethinking of control strategies. Today it is widely acknowledged that there is no eradication strategy which is universally applicable and that malaria control must be a combination of efficient treatment, vector control and diagnosis adjusted to the individual geographic and endemic context in which it is applied. In recent years a substantial reduction of malaria incidence has been reported from several countries, as achieved through the application of effective antimalarial drugs and substantially increased vector control efforts through mass distribution of insecticide treated bed nets. It seems that these measures, if sustained and expanded, may eventually drive the disease back to beyond the fringes of the controlled areas, but it is unlikely that they will eradicate the malaria parasite altogether.