Scientists Discover New Compound That Fights Off Malaria One Time


A new experimental compound in the fight against malaria is showing great promise in animal trials, preventing the host from contracting the parasites during the period of the study.
Scientists from the Massachussets Institute of Technology and Harvard carried out the clinicals, using a compound that managed to stave off the malaria infection that’s all too deadly in many parts of the world.
Conducting trials on mice for a period of thirty days, the compound was able to prevent the animals from contracting malaria, even when introduced into their bodies.
The genius of this treatment is that it is a one time treatment, a revolutionary innovation in anti malarial drugs.
“The compound they found targets an enzyme called phenylalanyl-tRNA synthetase and appears to wipe out parasites before they can multiple in the liver and be released in bigger numbers into the bloodstream.” the BBC reported.
Lead researcher Prof Stuart Schreiber said he hopes the findings will lead to the discovery of better anti malarial drugs going forward.
“We invite the scientific community to use this database as a jumping off point for their work developing antimalarial therapies.” he said.
The research was reportedly funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
In 2015 alone, there were 214 million new cases of malaria and 438,000 malaria deaths, according to the World Health Organisation.

This post was published on September 9, 2016 6:10 PM

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