Experimental Plasmodium falciparum cerebral malaria in the squirrel monkey Saimiri sciureus

Infection of the squirrel monkey, Saimiri sciureus, with several strains of Plasmodium falciparum leads in a proportion of animals to neurological symptoms with a fatal outcome. This first simian model for human cerebral malaria was studied with three strains of parasites, the uncloned Palo Alto(FUP-1) strain, the Palo AltoPLF3 clone MHB11, and the recently monkey-adapted P. falciparum strain IPC/RAY. Cerebral malaria could develop during primo infection of monkeys, whether the animals had been splenectomized or not. It did not occur in all animals and the appearance of neurological symptoms could not be predicted, as it was not related to the degree of parasitemia or duration of parasite infections.