Many people there have evolved a “natural immunity” to Malaria. Unfortunatley, the adaption predisposes them to another condition - Sickle Cell Anemia.
I guess the best answer is that there is some native West Africans that do possess certain HLA antigens which are rare in caucasians that appear to confer protection against severe malaria.
Also not natural immunity, rather natural selection, one species of malaria (Plasmodium vivax) use a particular blood group substance on the red cell surface, the Duffy Antigen, as a receptor to effect there entry into the red cell. Certain African populations lack this blood antigen and are totally resistant to the parasite.
Children are most often infected, while adults that survived an infection do develop immunity to that particular local strain of the parasite.
It has actually, it’s known as sickle cell trait. Sickle Cell anemia will kill you, and people without sickle cell trait will die of malaria. So actually, your wrong. The only people who survive (for the majority) in poor places in africa are people with sickle cell trait.
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Because it’s largely a south and central american disease?
Many people there have evolved a “natural immunity” to Malaria. Unfortunatley, the adaption predisposes them to another condition - Sickle Cell Anemia.
I guess the best answer is that there is some native West Africans that do possess certain HLA antigens which are rare in caucasians that appear to confer protection against severe malaria.
Also not natural immunity, rather natural selection, one species of malaria (Plasmodium vivax) use a particular blood group substance on the red cell surface, the Duffy Antigen, as a receptor to effect there entry into the red cell. Certain African populations lack this blood antigen and are totally resistant to the parasite.
Children are most often infected, while adults that survived an infection do develop immunity to that particular local strain of the parasite.
It has actually, it’s known as sickle cell trait. Sickle Cell anemia will kill you, and people without sickle cell trait will die of malaria. So actually, your wrong. The only people who survive (for the majority) in poor places in africa are people with sickle cell trait.