A cure for malaria? One-dose experimental drug cured 7 volunteers of the malaria parasite

An experimental drug cured seven people from a malaria parasite, discover new research.

The team, led by the University of Basel in Switzerland, said a dose of a drug called DSM265 had blocked an enzyme needed for the survival of the parasite, killing it.

The parasite P. falciparum is one of the deadliest in the world and is responsible for nearly half a million deaths each year.

The researchers say this is the first step in the multi-drug cure currently needed to treat malaria and towards a simpler and less expensive single-dose cure.

A new study has shown that a dose of an experimental drug called DSM265 had cured seven people of a malaria parasite (image of the file)

Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) is the most lethal species of Plasmodium, a parasite that causes malaria in humans.

The parasite is transmitted by the bite of an Anopheles female mosquito and is responsible for 50% of malaria cases.

P. falciparum is the most dangerous form of malaria, affecting the liver, brain and cardiovascular system.

According to the World Health Organization, 219 million people were infected with the parasite in 2017 and 435,000 died from malaria.

The treatment consists of a combination of antimalarials that kills the parasite and medications to alleviate symptoms such as fever, nausea, and muscle soreness for several days.

In addition, previous studies have shown that DSM265 can get rid of asexual stage parasites, called merozoites, that cause disease in humans infected with P. falciparum.

"A single dose course would provide a treatment that could improve compliance, reduce the development of resistance and possibly contribute to the eradication of this disease," said co-author Dr. Jörg Möhrle, associate professor of biology infections and epidemiology at the University of Basel.

"The DSM265 could potentially be part of such a single dose cure."

For the study, published in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, the team injected eight volunteers with blood-stage malaria parasites.

One of the adults did not develop the infection.

On the seventh day of infection, participants received a single oral dose of 400 mg DSM265.

After taking the drug, the seven participants who developed the infection were cleared of the merozoites.

The drug has not been able to eliminate the parasites of the sexual stage, called gametocytes, but is still considered a curative treatment because gametocytes do not cause the disease.

For future research, the team plans to explore options for a possible companion drug that could eliminate gametocytes while the DSM265 eliminates merozoites.

"Currently, Medicines for Malaria Venture is employing to improve the formulation of DSM265 and identify the ideal partner drug to achieve single-dose treatment of P. falciparum malaria," said Dr. Möhrle.