In this week's PLoS Medicine , Michael Delves of Imperial College London, UK and colleagues compare the activity of 50 current and experimental antimalarials against liver, sexual blood, and mosquito stages of selected human and nonhuman parasite species, including Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium berghei , and Plasmodium yoelii . These results provide a valuable guide to help researchers decide which drugs and compounds show most promise as potential future antimalarial drugs for blocking the transmission of malaria.
The authors say: "This information might guide decisions regarding which molecules could be optimally combined to provide the next generation of drugs that will succeed to artemisinin combination therapies (ACTs) and support the eradication of malaria. This comprehensive approach to drug discovery has potential utility for targeting other pathogens with complex life cycles."
Funding: This work was made possible by grants from MMV (Medicines for Malaria Venture) donors: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UK DFID, Rockefeller Foundation, Netherlands Minister Devt. Co-operation, WHO/RBM, Swiss government (DEZA/SDC), World Bank, Wellcome Trust, ExxonMobil Foundation, BHP Billiton, USAID, EU CRIMALDDI, Irish Aid, US National Institutes of Health (NIH), Spanish Agency for International Development (for more information, see the MMV website: http://www.mmv.org ). EAW, DP, and SM were supported by the Wellcome Trust, MMV, and the Keck Foundation. MD and RES were supported by MMV. SW and CS were supported by MMV and Swiss TPH. No MMV funding bodies had any role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Citation: Delves M, Plouffe D, Scheurer C, Meister S, Wittlin S, et al. (2012) The Activities of Current Antimalarial Drugs on the Life Cycle Stages of Plasmodium Life Cycle: A Comparative Study with Human and Rodent Parasites. PLoS Med 9(2): e1001169. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001169
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Didier Leroy
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PLOS Medicine