Scientists develop new drug to combat malaria

A team of scientists from UC Riverside, UC Irvine, and Yale School of Medicine has created a new drug, MED6-189, that shows promise in fighting malaria.

The drug works on both drug-sensitive and drug-resistant strains of Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite.

In lab tests and in mice with human blood, MED6-189 was highly effective.

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The study, published in the journal Science, explains that MED6-189 attacks the parasite in two ways: it damages the apicoplast, an essential part of the parasite’s cell, and disrupts how the parasite moves materials inside its cells.

This dual action prevents the parasite from developing resistance to the drug, making MED6-189 a strong new option in the battle against malaria.

“Disruption of the apicoplast and vesicular trafficking blocks the parasite’s development and thus eliminates infection in red blood cells and in our humanized mouse model of P. falciparumm alaria,” said Karine Le Roch, senior author of the study and professor at UC Riverside.

The drug was also potent against other malaria parasites that affect animals, like P. knowlesi, found in monkeys.

Inspired by a compound from marine sponges, MED6-189 was synthesized by Christopher Vanderwal, a chemistry professor at UC Irvine.

Vanderwal noted that many successful malaria drugs come from natural sources, like artemisinin, which is derived from the sweet wormwood plant.

The drug has already shown success in animal trials.

Researchers at GSK, a pharmaceutical company, tested MED6-189 on mice infected with P. falciparum, and the drug cleared the parasite.

Tests on P. knowlesi in monkeys produced similar results, effectively eliminating the parasite from their red blood cells.

The scientists plan to improve the drug and continue testing its effectiveness using advanced research methods.

This project was supported by the National Institutes of Health and involved collaboration with multiple institutes, including the Stowers Institute for Medical Research and the University of Georgia.

The study’s title is “A Potent Kalihinol Analogue Disrupts Apicoplast Function and Vesicular Trafficking in P. falciparum Malaria.”