Malaria develops resistance to artemisinin

(March 06)

The first frightening signs of resistance to artemisinin, the saviour among malaria drugs, has arisen in malaria strains in Senegal through a mutation in a single gene, whose expressed protein SERCA-PfATPase6 appears to be the drug’s target. Single-drug artemisinin preparations were in uncontrolled use in the area. WHO has called for an immediate halt on their manufacture and use, and an increased focus on artemi-sinin combination therapies – which, however, remain too expensive for most users.

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