Identify a new enzyme of malaria parasites

Scientists on November 27 published in the journal Nature that they have identified a new enzyme of malaria-causing parasites, helping to find more effective treatments for dangerous diseases. this.

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The enzyme that the team discovered was called Phosphatidylinositol-4-kinase or PI4 K. This is an enzyme that Plasmodium malaria parasites need to sustain life in host cells.

PI4K is used by parasites to metabolize energy in every stage of the infectious process on the human body.

The detection of PI4K helps doctors use potential drugs to attack this new enzyme, which in turn can kill pathogenic parasites.

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The medical community judged this as an important finding, since parasites' weaknesses are often difficult to detect in order to prevent all complex stages of Plasmodium process from developing and multiplying. in the patient's body.

Case McNamara, a genetic specialist at the Novartis Research Foundation in San Diego, California, said most malaria drugs are only capable of affecting certain stages of the life cycle. parasites, which are not the whole process.

It is noteworthy that potential drugs cannot wipe out the early forms of the parasite called Hypnozoites , so they remain active in the liver, then revive causing recurrence of malaria in patients.

Using drugs that directly affect PI4K not only helps to cure malaria infections but also prevents infection, even prevents the transmission of parasites back to mosquitoes.

Therefore, this is a new treatment factor that is more effectively evaluated than the use of Primaquine in controlling Hypnozoites.

Although licensed for more than half a century, researchers say Primaquine is still considered a last resort because it can cause anemia and life-threatening diseases in people with inherent mutations. Genetic genes.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2010, there were about 219 million cases of malaria in the world, causing about 660,000 deaths, most of them under 5 years old in sub-Saharan Africa.

The disease is still one of the main causes of death and illness in the Asia-Pacific region with about 36 million cases and 49,000 deaths annually.