The first vaccine against malaria loses its effectiveness after 4 years of injection

A malaria vaccine in Phase II of a trial showed that after 4 years of injections, the protection effect against the disease was 0%, according to AFP on March 20.

It is RTS, S vaccine of GlaxoSmithKline (UK), which is being tested in 11 locations in 7 African countries.

A test conducted in 320 children in Kenya showed that the results were not very positive.

Mosquitoes transmit malaria

The research team noted that after 1 year of vaccination, the protection effect was 43.6% but in the fourth year, the protection effect dropped to 0%.

They also found that the more exposed the child is to malaria, the lower the protection effect from the disease.

The findings, however, have not been discouraged by health experts.

Phillip Bejon, a scientist at the Center for Tropical Medicine, University of Oxford (UK), a member of the test team said the vaccine is still useful in the fight against deadly disease.

Meanwhile, Mary Anne Rhyne, a spokeswoman for GlaxoSmithKline, said the Kenyan study was 'small' and only used data from one of the many places where trials were being conducted on a larger scale. a lot of.

RTS, S vaccine is still in the process of developing and improving benefits before mass production, added Mary Anne Rhyne.