6 hours ago
by James Gallagher, BBC health and science correspondent
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busy as a carrier of malaria
Oxford University scientists in the UK succeed Develop an antimalarial vaccine who believe that it will completely “change the world”
The team of scientists expected It will be able to produce and ship a vaccine called “R21” (R21) within the next year. After the experimental results, it was found that The vaccine is 80% effective against malaria.
not only that Scientists who developed it emphasized that Importantly, the vaccine is cheap, about 100 baht per dose, and now the team has contracts to produce more than 100 million doses of the vaccine per year, with the Indian Institute of Serology responsible for the UK’s antimalarial vaccine. Oxford If approved by the World Health Organization
The Malaria No More charity sees success in developing a new antimalarial vaccine. It may help prevent more children from dying from this deadly disease. “During our lifetimes”
Developing an effective antimalarial vaccine It took more than a century because development was a difficult process. due to the parasite that causes malaria They are complex and difficult to detect.
malaria parasite carry mosquitoes spread the disease is moving all the time It also transforms itself upon entering the human body. This makes it difficult to build immunity to resist.
last year The World Health Organization has approved the first antimalarial vaccine developed by pharmaceutical giant GSK (GSK). for use in Africa
However, a team of scientists at the University of Oxford claimed that The team’s approach to vaccine development more efficient and can be produced in larger quantities than the vaccine approved by the World Health Organization.
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Vaccine against malaria up to 80%
because of the results of an experiment with 409 children in Nanoro In Burkina Faso, published in Lancet, the Medical Journal of Communicable Diseases, three doses of vaccination followed by one booster once a year provide up to 80% of immunity to malaria.
Professor Adrian Hill, Director of the Jenner Institute of the University of Oxford believes that “this data It is the best outcome for a malaria vaccine ever.”
Scientists are now set to begin the vaccine approval process within the next few weeks, but the results will still depend on the vaccine trials on 4,800 children scheduled to be completed by the end of the year.
Prof. Hill believes that with a cheap price and the volume of production that can be done very quickly and “We may see a significant decrease in the number of victims who die from horrific diseases like malaria.”
“We hope people will use this vaccine. And we will have this vaccine as an option to save lives by the end of next year.”
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Malaria has long been a human scourge.
Malaria is a deadly disease that has been a scourge of humanity for thousands of years. Most of the deaths were young children and newborns. on average each year More than 400,000 people have died from malaria, despite developments in the production of mosquito nets, pesticides and medicines. will advance a lot
As for the malaria vaccine, R21 is the 14th vaccine that Professor Katie Ewer has co-developed at Oxford University. That we can produce 7 vaccines quickly and effectively…this disease is much more difficult.”
She also told the BBC that “Very satisfying” that it got to this point, and “the potential of this vaccine when published. can change the world at all.”
Why the vaccine works
GSK’s first WHO-approved vaccine is similar to the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford.
Both vaccines target the early life cycle of the malaria parasite. By inhibiting parasites from infiltrating the liver. and embedded deep in the human body
Both vaccines are made by mixing proteins. extracted from the malaria parasite and hepatitis B virus But Oxford’s vaccine contains more protein from the malaria parasite. because the research team believes It allows the immune system to target malaria rather than hepatitis.
Indeed, the success of GSK Vaccines in assessing the success of vaccination programs in Africa. The Oxford team of scientists believed that There is a high chance that the vaccine will be approved within the next year.
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Oxford’s vaccine may be available next year.
But at this point it is still difficult to compare the properties of the GSK and Oxford vaccines. Because while Oxford’s vaccine seems more effective, the GSK vaccine is already being used in the real world. another factor This is because the Oxford vaccine began trials in samples just before the start of the malaria season in Burkina Faso.
Professor Azra Ghani, Head of the Department of Epidemiology in Communicable Diseases Imperial College London said the results were “very welcome” but warned that Money is also an important factor. to push people to have broader access to vaccines
“Without investment We risk losing much of what we’ve made in the past few decades. And we may see another wave of malaria return,” Prof Ghani said.
Gareth Jenkins, from the Malaria No More Foundation, said: “The results of the prestigious Oxford Jenner Institute R21 vaccine trial It’s another good sign that If there is enough support World can stop child malaria deaths within our lifetimes.”