Genetics and Health

Both Genes and Household Environment Affect Risk of Malaria

by Hsien Hsien Lei, PhD on November 8th, 2005

Malaria is transmitted by female Anopheles mosquitoes. But that doesn’t mean every person who gets bitten by a mosquito carrying the malaria parasite becomes sick. Margaret Mackinnon of the University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom, and colleagues say people’s risk of getting malaria is determined by both their genes and their environment.

In a study of 3,500 Kenyan children, they found that about one quarter of the variability in malaria incidence could be explained by genetic factors. Unspecified household factors accounted for another quarter. The haemoglobin S gene (implicated in sickle cell anemia) explained only 2% of the total variation.

Household factors that might increase a family’s risk of malaria include:

• Socio-economics
• Poor housing materials
• Lack of insecticide-treated bednets
• Limited access to healthcare

Dr. Mackinnon:

Being able to clean up the backyard of mosquito breeding sites and to feed the children well will also affect their susceptibility to malaria - good general health will mean the children have stronger immune systems.

Another good example of gene-environment interaction.

SciDev.Net, November 8, 2005

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POSTED IN: Genetics of Disease