Malaria and Quinine Resistance: A Medical and Scientific Issue between Brazil and Germany (1907–19)

Abstract

This article addresses the discussion about quinineresistant malaria plasmodium in the early decades of the twentieth century. Observed by Arthur Neiva in Rio de Janeiro in 1907, the biological and social resistance of malaria sufferers to preventive and curative treatment with quinine was corroborated three years later by Oswaldo Cruz during the construction of the Madeira-Mamoré Railway in the Brazilian Amazon. Likewise in 1910, ailing German workers were transferred from Brazil to Hamburg's Institute for Maritime and Tropical Diseases, where quinine resistance was confirmed by Bernard Nocht and Heinrich Werner. When the First World War saw failures in treating and preventing malaria with quinine along with violent outbreaks of the disease on the Turkish and Balkan fronts, resistance to this alkaloid became the topic of the day within the field of experimental medicine in Germany. New attempts were made to account for the resistance, especially by the physician Ernst Rodenwaldt, who explored the topic by applying modern theories on heredity. The present article offers a preliminary survey and analysis of pronouncements about quinine resistance, shedding new light on the circulation of knowledge in the field of tropical medicine.

Monitoring of drug intake during pregnancy by questionnaires and LC‐MS/MS drug urine screening: evaluation of both monitoring methods

“…This finding included also the detection of quinine (n = 18) and theophylline (n = 7). Quinine is used historically as an antimalarial drug or more recent as an agent against cramps in the calf . Tocolytic effects of quinine are discussed, thus the drug is contraindicated during pregnancy for treatment of cramps according to European summaries of product characteristics .…”

“…Quinine is used historically as an antimalarial drug or more recent as an agent against cramps in the calf. [30,31] Tocolytic effects of quinine are discussed, thus the drug is contraindicated during pregnancy for treatment of cramps according to European summaries of product characteristics. [32,33] However, quinine is a low-dosed ingredient of beverages such as tonic water.…”

Plasmodial enzymes in metabolic pathways as therapeutic targets and contemporary strategies to discover new antimalarial drugs: a review

“…This hinders the efforts to reduce the morbidity and mortality rates related to this disease (Olliaro & Mussano, 2003). Resistance of P. falciparum towards antimalarial starting from the first report of quinine resistance in 1910, followed by chloroquine in 1960 (Blount 1967;da Silva & Benchimol, 2014;Tan et al, 2014). An analysis of molecular, genetic and biochemical approaches to P. falciparum gene resistance towards chloroquine has been conducted by Le Bras & Durand (2003), which the study aimed to elucidate P. falciparum multidrug resistance 1 gene (pfmdr1).…”

The Artemisinin Resistance in Southeast Asia: An Imminent Global Threat to Malaria Elimination

“…Quinine, initially as cinchona bark, was first used as a fever medicine and officially introduced into the London Pharmacopoeia in 1677 [27]. The earliest resistance to quinine was reported in 1910 [28,29]. Like chloroquine, quinine has been shown to accumulate in the parasite's digestive vacuole inhibiting the haem detoxification process.…”