The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 273 No 7325 p709
13 November 2004

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Trial shows malaria vaccine for young children is effective

A vaccine against malaria for young children is feasible, a trial in Mozambique has shown.

A randomised controlled trial of the candidate vaccine RTS.S/AS02A was carried out in 2,022 children aged one to four years, and showed that its efficacy was 58 per cent against severe malaria, with indications that efficacy might be even higher in the youngest children (Lancet 2004;364:1411). The vaccine contains part of a protein called circumsporozite (CS), which coats the malaria-causing parasite Plasmodium falciparum. Development of RTS.S/AS02A emerged from research at New York University showing that CS protein can generate antibodies against malaria parasites.