A drug is expected to turn human blood into a toxin with mosquitoes

Ivermectin-derived drugs that turn human blood into toxins with mosquitoes and kill them are about to hit the market in two years.

A new anti-malarial drug is being tested in humans after Kenyan scientists successfully used a bacterial derivative to kill the parasite that causes the disease.

The Kenyan Institute of Medical Research (Kemri) and global health partners say this is a breakthrough in malaria prevention, a disease that kills about half a million people a year worldwide.

This promising new treatment comes after successful trials of Ivermectin, an oral drug that not only keeps mosquitoes away, but also converts human blood into a toxin to a disease-causing insect. this.

A child in Nairobi plays in a mosquito net.(Photo: Stephen Morrison / EPA).

Ivermectin is a medicine commonly used to treat parasitic diseases such as river blindness, elephantiasis. Research has also shown that Ivermectin can kill plasmodium falciparum - a malaria parasite found in mosquitoes.

Dr Simon Kariuki, head of Kenya's malaria research program in Kemri, said: 'Resistance is always something that parasites always find ways to fight. Therefore, finding a new treatment is a must and it must be put into use soon. '

According to Dr. Kariuki, bacterial derivatives are highly effective in killing malaria-causing parasites - plasmodium falciparum . "However, our research focuses on children and pregnant women more because they are very vulnerable subjects to these parasites ," Kariuki said.

If the clinical trial is successful, the drug will become available in the next 2 years.

According to a study published by the Yale School of Public Health, malaria in children can be reduced by up to 20% if people living in this high-risk area use Ivermectin.

Mosquitoes are being raised at a research facility in Nairobi, Kenya.(Photo: Stephen Morrison / EPA).

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mosquito-borne diseases annually cause about 750,000 deaths worldwide, most of them children. Of these, approximately 430,000 people die from malaria-related symptoms. In addition, experts have warned that a climate crisis could make matters worse.

'Future trials of drugs for women and children are clearly planned and have the highest safety standards. We need to be sure about the safety of Ivermectin and we also need to get new anti-malarial drugs as soon as possible. Resistance is something we cannot ignore and it must be considered an emergency, 'Kariuki said.

Currently, the most effective vaccine against malaria is the RTS, S vaccine. This is the vaccine introduced in the WHO-proposed pilot program in 2019. In tests it was found to prevent about 39% of malaria cases among children of age 5 to 7 months.

Scientists hope that the new drug will help Africa, particularly countries in the southern Sahara, fight malaria since it is home to 90% of malaria patients and 92%. deaths from this disease worldwide.