Kevin Read, a researcher at the University of Dundee’s Drug Discovery Unit in the United Kingdom, said that clinical testing of the compound should begin within a year.
According to a study, just one dose of the compound could be used to fight malaria infections in patients and increase their immunity against the parasite.
“The chemical compound of this potential drug is different from any other antimalarial compound in that it interacts at many different stages of the parasite life cycle,” Read noted.
Colin Sutherland, a researcher at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, stated that if clinical trials are successful, the drug will be available in five or six years.
“The compound interferes with some of the machinery involved in protein synthesis in the parasite at different stages of its life cycle.
“As the chemical remains active for a very long time within the body, It could also become a protective agent, preventing healthy people from contracting the disease,” Read added.
The compound, currently named DDD107498, was originally discovered in 2010. Now it is going through the final stages of preclinical safety testing.
Since the compound is simple to make, researchers believe that one dose of the final product should cost about $1, similar to existing treatments.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Malaria kills more than half a million people a year; they are mostly children under five years of age.
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