Development of Malarial Vaccines

Malaria is an arthropod-borne blood infection transmitted by the female anopheline mosquito and caused by protozoan parasites of the Plasmodium genus. Four species of Plasmodium are infectious to humans; P.falciparum, P.vivax, P.malariae and P.ovale. P.falciparum is the most prevalent organism and frequently causes severe and fatal infections amidst the young, the pregnant and the immune-compromised and accounts for at least 95% of the 750 million cases occurring each year in Tropical Africa. Although the mortality rate of P.vivax is much lower than that of P.falciparum it causes an extremely incapacitating disease and represents the prevalent form of recurring malaria. P.vivax alongside P.falciparum accounts for almost all of the 100 million cases which arise each year out with Africa.

Since the latter part of the 20th Century it has been a goal of the WHO alongside many pharmaceutical companies and charities to develop vaccines against these two species of malaria. However,...