People of African descent often carry a genetic mutation that protects them against Malaria. Unfortunately, researchers have found, the mutation may contribute to the higher rate of Prostate cancer in African-American men, as well as their higher death rate from the disease.

That conclusion comes from research conducted in mice, which was reported Monday at the American Society of Investigative Pathology meeting in San Diego.

“In malaria-endemic areas such as West Africa, it was found that most of the population had a genetic mutation in the Duffy antigen/receptor for chemokines, or DARC receptor,” Dr. Alex B. Lentsch explained in a telephone interview with Reuters Health.

The mutation prevents the expression of the DARC receptor on red blood cells - “kind of a genetic protective mechanism against malarial infection,” the University of Cincinnati researcher noted.

Using mice bred to develop prostate cancer spontaneously, Lentsch and his colleagues compared the growth and size of prostate tumors in animals with or without DARC.

Both sets of mice developed tumors at roughly the same time, Lentsch said. However, once the tumors were present, they grew significantly faster in the mice without DARC. “Tumors from mice lacking DARC compared to wild-type mice were dramatically bigger in volume and mass,” he said.

“These data clearly suggest a role for DARC in more aggressive prostate cancer tumor growth in African Americans, primarily because they do not have the receptor,” Lentsch stated.

“This suggests that a simple blood test for the presence or absence of DARC on red blood cells could give us some information as to whether they are more likely to have aggressive tumor growth,” he added.

The study was funded by the United States Army Medical and Material Command.