Gene mutation protects against malaria

Not everyone who is bitten by malaria-infected mosquitoes develop the life threatening disease, according to new research.

Scientists at the University of Toronto found that a deficiency in an enzyme called pyruvate kinase provides protection against malaria infection.

Professor Kevin Kain, who headed the team at the department of medicine from McGill University, said: "Our research shows that people who have an enzyme deficiency or those who carry the gene trait for this deficiency may be protected from severe and fatal malaria."

He described how the enzyme mutations make people more resistant to malaria and can help in the design of new strategies to prevent or treat severe malaria in places such as sub-Saharan Africa. Dr Kain says approximately one in 20,000 people is deficient in pyruvate kinase

The study was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Scientists in Brazil recently developed a new vaccine which combines two existing malaria drugs in one fixed dose. Developed by Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative, they claim that the new drug has the advantages of a shorter treatment time at a cheaper cost-price for poverty stricken areas.