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Malaria: the latest drugs and vaccines

Scientists

in Oxford, southern

England,

have developed a new vaccine that, in tests on mice, has given total protec tion against malaria.

Although human trials have yet to take place,

this result is still causing excitement because it is the best to be obtained with any vaccine at this stage of the research involved. Meanwhile a separate research team at Imperial College in London has made a discovery that they believe may lead to a completely new way to prevent ing the spread of malaria, by preventing the parasite from undergoing sexual repro duction in malarial mosquitoes. The popu lations of more than 90 countries are at risk from malaria. The disease kills between one and two million people every year, mostly in sub-Saharan African countries.

Many believe malaria to be the world’s sin gle most serious health problem. In recent times health administrators have strongly criticised the relative lack of resources devoted to malaria compared to other dis eases, that affect fewer people. But now good news on the research front. First from a research team at the Oxford Institute for Molecular Medicine, led by Professor Adrian Hill, which is working to develop a vaccine to protect against malaria. Two vaccines are already being tested against malaria in humans. One has been produced by a United States army laboratory, the other by the pharmaceutical company, Smith Kline Beecham.

The first vaccine is composed simply of Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) material from the malarial parasite. The second is composed of a single parasite surface anti gen, produced on a large scale by genetic

engineering. Until quite recently all vac

cines were made from killed or weakened whole micro-organisms that, when inject ed, are able to stimulate immunity to the disease they normally cause, without caus ing it themselves. But this approach has proved ineffective and new experimental approaches have had to be devised. ■