Millions of people around the world get malaria every year. Hundreds of thousands die from this, mostly children. The WHO wants to have the disease eradicated in five countries over the next five years. Successes in a study for a malaria vaccine in the UK could be a big step in the right direction.
In the fight against malaria, researchers report important findings. In a clinical study, a potential malaria vaccine developed by the Jenner Institute at the University of Oxford showed 77 percent effectiveness, the scientists said. For the study, a total of 450 small children in Burkina Faso were vaccinated with the vaccine in 2019 and then observed for a year.
According to the released information, no serious side effects were found in the vaccinees. The vaccine, dubbed R21 / Matrix-M, is the first malaria candidate to have already surpassed the World Health Organization (WHO) target to develop a vaccine with 75 percent effectiveness by 2030. In collaboration with the Indian Serum Institute and the American pharmaceutical company Novavax, a broader study with 4,800 children in four African countries is now expected to provide further information.
The director of the Jenner Institute, Adrian Hill, spoke of a “amazing dayin the fight against malaria. “I think there is a good chance that we will make a breakthrough”, he told PA news agency. Prime Minister Boris Johnson described the result as one “groundbreaking success”. “Malaria kills hundreds of thousands of children every year. An effective vaccine opens the way to end this global tragedy.”, he tweeted.
The WHO has announced an initiative for World Malaria Day next Sunday, in which 25 countries will participate, to achieve malaria-free by 2025. These include Guatemala, Honduras, North Korea and Thailand. The organization estimates that nearly 230 million people get sick from the mosquito-borne disease every year. In 2019, more than 400,000 people died from it, two-thirds of them children under the age of five. Africa is particularly hard hit with more than 90 percent of malaria deaths.
This is a landmark achievement by the team at @UniofOxford who developed the COVID-19 vaccine.
Malaria kills hundreds of thousands of children a year. An effective vaccine holds out the possibility of ending this global tragedy.
https://t.co/9ZiKfzO27s— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) April 23, 2021
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