Experts closer to malaria vaccine

Scientists are one step closer to developing a vaccine which could “revolutionise” the fight against malaria.

The disease currently claims more than 750,000 lives a year but experts believe their findings could help cut that number by a third.

If given the green light, the vaccine could be in use by 2015.

David Schellenberg, professor atthe London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), said the vaccine, referred to as RTSs, is currently being tested but could “revolutionise malaria control”.

“It could have an absolutely massive effect,” said Prof. Schellenberg, who estimates that it could prevent the disease in 30 per cent to 50 per cent of patients.

“I think it’s unlikely to be much more than that, but when you have a disease that’s causing hundreds of millions of episodes, even a one-third reduction in this would be seriously useful.

“I can’t think of another potential intervention that could have such a dramatic effect on survival.”

There is currently no vaccine for the disease, which primarily affects very young children.

Prof. Schellenberg warned that there was still a lack of “robust information” on the ability of the vaccine to reduce both the number of people who contract malaria and numbers of deaths from the disease, but suggested the initial results were promising.

“I think it’s unimaginable that a vaccine that reduces malaria episodes by one third wouldn’t have at least that sort of size effect on deaths,” he said.

The RTSs vaccine is currently in phase three of its trial, in which scientists test the extent of the protection it offers.

The information is then submitted to a health regulator, which will decide whether to grant a licence for it to be produced.

Prof. Schellenberg estimated this process could happen within two years.

“Once you’ve got a licensed vaccine, the WHO has something to think about – whether or not it wants to recommend it,” he said.

“Once it recommends it, donors will start to support the purchase of the vaccine and the distribution of it. All these things have to happen before the first child gets a dose of the vaccine.

“We hope that the regulatory approval and the WHO recommendation will be available by the end of 2015.”

The vaccination will primarily be targeted at infants, because once a child reaches the age of five, it is less likely to die from the disease.

It would largely be used in Africa, where 90 per cent of deaths from the most deadliest form of malaria occur.

Other developments in efforts to fight the disease, which is spread by mosquito bites, include targeting areas where transmission of infection is seasonal.