CANDIDATE LOGIN Register today! • Forgot password? Call us now on: 01304 200 310 HOME ABOUT US EMPLOYER SERVICES JOB SEARCH CANDIDATES CONTACT US Home > News View MALARIA: HOPE THROUGH VACCINATION 15/10/2021 Malaria is a disease which has plagued mankind for generations and kills around 400,000 people each year worldwide. The focus on malaria shifted somewhat due to the emergence of a new, immediate threat: SARS-CoV-2. A disease of the third world, malaria is a problematic parasite from the Plasmodium disease transmitted primarily by female anopheles mosquitos which are native to sub-Saharan Africa and the equator in general. Available malaria prophylaxis includes agents such as Doxycycline, an antibiotic used to prevent contracting the disease. The available prophylactics we have are often lacking in efficacy, cause significant side effects (Doxycycline potently increases the risk of sun burn and skin cancer, not ideal when travelling to the equator) and are inconvenient to take. It was announced in early October 2021, that due to incredible advances in vaccine technology, the first true efficacious malaria vaccine is now available. The recommendation of the RTS,S/AS01 (RTS,S) vaccine by the World Health Organisation for children in areas with high prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum is unprecedented. The parasite, transmitted via contact between the blood and saliva of mosquitos can cause a fatal condition of seizures, coma and other unpleasant symptoms before an untimely death. This parasite causes high fatality in sub-Saharan Africa in combination with other factors including malnutrition, poor sanitation or lack of access to medical supplies. The vaccine has been touted by the WHO director general as “*sic*, a vaccine on top of existing tools to prevent malaria could save tens of thousands of young lives each year.” The groundbreaking vaccine lends technology first discovered earlier this year in the development of vaccines to tackle another epidemiological nightmare: the novel coronavirus. Using mRNA techniques, researchers were able to ‘teach’ our immune systems to generate the coronavirus spike protein, have our immune system attack and recognise it, and generate good levels of antibody resistance with an acceptable longevity (4-12 months). Although the coronavirus vaccines may have less efficacy in preventing transmission, this is not a concern with malaria as the disease cannot be transmitted to other individuals by an affected person. The current vaccines available before RTS held around 30% efficacy and required a lengthy 4-injection procedure to inoculate individuals. As malaria can be latent, and contracted several times across the lifespan, a big goal of creating a vaccine was generating persisting antibodies to prevent infection for the remainder of the lifespan. 2.3 million doses of the RTS vaccine have been delivered in three African countries included in a clinical trial, and it was found that 2 out of 3 children who were not sleeping under a bed net could benefit from the vaccine. When delivered with other measures, there was a 90% success rate in preventing malarial disease – and those children who did contract the disease (potentially due to lack of response) had a typically mild presentation involving sickness and headache. The vaccine targets the disease when it is in a form of replication within the affected individual’s liver – the erythrocytic stage. Here, the vaccine targets the RNA information of the circumsporozoite protein – a similar mechanism to neutralising the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. In a positive notion, the introduction of the vaccine to these communities did not reduce the other prophylactic behaviour such as nets, other vaccination or attendance of health centers. Similar adverse events were reported for the coronavirus vaccine, with mostly post-injection headache, tiredness and fatigue, but generally a favourable safety profile. What’s more, this delivery in the clinical trial was underway during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, demonstrating the ability to widely distribute the vaccines in the three included African countries: Ghana, Kenya and Malaria. Alongside other anti-parasitic agents and future vaccination against other deadly pathogens like the coronavirus, the health status of millions of Africans could improve in the immediate term and improve quality of life for many. Gavi, Unitaid and The vaccine alliance funded the pilot study, and it is believed the WHO will now produce the information to inform the affected countries and the funding available. It is hoped that this will be accepted at a continent wide level to fast track vaccination against this deadly pathogen, hopefully another burden we can start to leave behind us. Please click here to view all news articles © 2014 - 2021 Sterling Cross | Recruitment Website Design | Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | Read our cookie policy for more information. By continuing to browse this site you are agreeing to our use of cookies.