New protein target for anti-malaria fight

Targeting a specific protein may help overcome drug-resistant strains of malaria, according to new research.

Blocking the protein, an enzyme called PfSUB1, stop the release of the malaria parasite from red blood cells, the team from the National Institute for Medical Research discovered.

The scientists responsible for the research told the BBC that they hoped their findings could, in the long term, help to develop a vaccine to combat the malarial parasites increasing resistance to conventional treatment.

"It means there's a real potential for developing treatments," Dr Mike Blackman said. "There is widespread resistance to anti-malaria drugs and that's a real issue in many parts of the world.

"We need to identify another Achilles heel that works in a novel way. The fact this is quite a different target would allow people to use a combination of drugs," he added.

In October, the Lancet revealed that early tests of a potential malaria vaccine in Mozambique had shown the treatment to be both safe and highly effective when used on children.

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