An observational study in Malaria, Asymptomatic Parasitaemia, sponsored by London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Recruiting at 2 sites in India. Open to participants aged 12 Months to 69 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-08-18.
Sponsored by London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine · Observational
The goal of this prospective cohort study is to understand the factors responsible for the persistence of malaria transmission in some areas despite intensive control efforts. The study will measure the prevalence and incidence of asymptomatic and sub-patent Plasmodium infections and examine the factors that contribute to persistent transmission among residents of malaria-endemic areas of Odisha, India.
The main questions the study aims to answer are: Do asymptomatic and sub-patent Plasmodium infections contribute to persistent malaria transmission in endemic areas of Odisha? What is the frequency of false-negative results and incorrect species identification when microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) are compared with PCR? How is malaria epidemiology changing over time across areas with different transmission patterns, including shifts in Plasmodium species? What is the prevalence of asymptomatic gametocyte carriers, and how might they contribute to ongoing transmission? What are the characteristics and distribution of mosquito vectors in and around households, and how do they relate to transmission patterns? Can novel host- and parasite-derived biomarkers improve the detection of malaria infections, including asymptomatic cases?
Participants will provide blood samples for malaria testing by microscopy, RDT and PCR. A subset will provide additional samples for biomarker analysis as part of a nested sub-study. Participants will be followed over time to measure malaria infection prevalence, incidence and changes in transmission patterns. They will also take part in household-level assessments, including surveys and mosquito vector monitoring around their homes.
Malaria transmission has declined in many parts of India as a result of expanded control efforts. However, persistent transmission continues in several regions despite high intervention coverage. Increasing evidence suggests that asymptomatic and subpatent Plasmodium infections may form an important hidden reservoir that sustains transmission and complicates malaria elimination. These infections are often missed by routine diagnostic methods such as microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), particularly in low-transmission or pre-elimination settings.
Local mosquito vector dynamics, including species composition, density and behaviour, are also likely to play a critical role in sustaining residual transmission, but remain insufficiently characterised in these settings.
This study is part of the Center for the Study of Complex Malaria in India 3 (CSCMi-3) and aims to characterise the epidemiology and biological determinants of hidden malaria infections in Odisha, India. It will also examine how vector, human and parasite factors interact to sustain transmission. The study is a prospective, community-based cohort conducted in selected rural villages across three endemic districts, representing different malaria transmission settings. Participants will be enrolled through household-based community surveys and followed longitudinally to monitor malaria infection dynamics over time.
The parent cohort study will enrol approximately 3,000 individuals, who will be followed through repeated visits to estimate the prevalence and incidence of asymptomatic malaria infections. The study will also assess the frequency of false-negative results and species misclassification by comparing routine diagnostic methods with molecular detection. In addition, it will evaluate Pfhrp2/Pfhrp3 gene deletions and explore potential shifts in Plasmodium species composition over time. Blood samples collected during study visits will be used for parasitological testing and laboratory analyses to better understand the persistence of malaria transmission.
Concurrent entomological surveys will be conducted in and around participant households to characterise mosquito vector species, density and seasonal patterns, and to examine their relationship with household-level infection patterns and ongoing transmission.
A nested biomarker sub-cohort will include a subset of participants who will undergo more frequent sampling to investigate circulating host- and parasite-derived biomarkers associated with malaria infection and transmission. These data will support the identification of biological indicators that may improve the detection of hidden infections and inform malaria surveillance strategies in elimination settings.
In parallel with the active community-based cohort, routinely collected malaria surveillance data from the Government of Odisha will be obtained for the study villages throughout the study period. These data will be used to characterise temporal trends in routine malaria surveillance, compare passive and active malaria case detection, and generate evidence to inform malaria surveillance and elimination strategies.
Together, the study will generate longitudinal epidemiological, diagnostic, biomarker and entomological data to improve understanding of residual malaria transmission and support evidence-based malaria surveillance, control and elimination strategies in India.
1,184 studies on the registry are indexed under Malaria; 79 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 3,000 is above the median of 582 across 204 observational studies indexed under Malaria.
Browse Malaria studies →London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine is the lead sponsor of 298 studies on the registry; 15 are open to participants now.
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Community residents living in selected rural villages in three districts of Odisha, India (Keonjhar, Boudh, and Malkangiri), representing different malaria transmission settings. Participants include males and females aged 12 months to 69 years who are enrolled through household-based community surveys and followed longitudinally to assess malaria infection, transmission dynamics, and biomarkers of infection. There are no restrictions based on residency duration, pregnancy status, social class, or underlying health conditions. For participants with severe anemia, study procedures are limited to finger-prick blood sampling in accordance with the study protocol.
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Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Informed consent
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
This prospective, community-based cohort will enrol approximately 3,000 participants from 15 villages across three districts of Odisha, India: Keonjhar, Boudh and Malkangiri, with five villages selected from each district. Participants aged 12 months to 69 years will be followed for four years, with study visits every six months before and after the monsoon season. At each visit, participants will undergo clinical assessment and finger-prick blood collection for malaria testing by rapid diagnostic test (RDT), microscopy and PCR. Samples will also be used for haemoglobin measurement and for the collection of plasma and erythrocytes for molecular and serological analyses, to monitor malaria epidemiology and transmission dynamics.
This nested prospective sub-cohort will enroll approximately 1,000 participants selected from the parent cohort across six villages, with two villages selected from each district. Participants will be recruited from three villages, one per district, beginning at the 12-month visit of the parent study in Year 2, and from the remaining three villages, one per district, in Year 3. Participants will undergo more frequent longitudinal sampling to characterise malaria transmission and infection dynamics using sero-epidemiology and circulating host- and parasite-derived biomarkers. Finger-prick blood samples will be collected for rapid diagnostic testing (RDT), microscopy, PCR-based detection of Plasmodium infection, and bead-based assays measuring anti-Plasmodium antibodies and other infection biomarkers. Concurrent entomological assessments conducted as part of the parent cohort will provide context on vector dynamics in relation to observed infection patterns and transmission.
Prevalence and incidence of Plasmodium infection - Project 1
Prevalence and incidence of Plasmodium infection among study participants, determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based detection of Plasmodium species in finger-prick blood samples collected during longitudinal community surveys. The study will estimate the prevalence, incidence and persistence of asymptomatic, subpatent and submicroscopic infections, together with species-specific infections.
Time frame: Nine time points between Years 1 and 5, including one baseline visit and eight follow-up visits conducted every six months.
Diagnostic performance of malaria microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests compared with PCR - Project 1
Diagnostic performance of malaria microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) compared with PCR, assessed by false-negative and false-positive results, positive and negative predictive values, and species concordance for Plasmodium detection.
Time frame: Baseline and follow-up visits conducted every six months over five years.
Novel circulating infection biomarkers of host and parasite origin - Biomarker Sub-study, Project 2
Identification and quantification of circulating host- and parasite-derived biomarkers associated with malaria infection, using multiplex and molecular assays in longitudinal blood samples collected from the biomarker sub-cohort
Time frame: Sixteen time points between Years 1 and 5, with eight time points each for Groups A and B.
Plan to share: Yes — De-identified individual participant data underlying the results reported in publications will be shared. This includes demographic data, clinical and laboratory measurements, malaria diagnostic results (RDT, microscopy, PCR), serological measurements, and selected entomological indicators collected during the study. Direct identifiers will be removed prior to data sharing.
Supporting information: Study protocol, Statistical analysis plan, Informed consent form
Time frame: De-identified individual participant data and supporting documents will be available beginning after publication of the primary study results. Data will remain available for up to 5 years following publication, subject to institutional data governance and data sharing policies.
Access criteria: De-identified individual participant data and supporting documents, including the study protocol, statistical analysis plan, informed consent forms and analytic code, will be made available to qualified researchers who submit a methodologically sound research proposal. Requests will be reviewed and approved by the study investigators and participating institutions. Access will be provided through a controlled data-sharing mechanism and may require a data-use agreement to ensure appropriate use of the data and protection of participant confidentiality. Only the data necessary to address the approved research question will be shared.
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