UNMC College of Pharmacy Researcher Leads $2.1 Million
International Study To Develop Promising New Compounds That May Lead to
New Anti-Malarial Drug
Researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of
Pharmacy have received a two-year, $2.1 million grant to develop a new
anti-malarial drug they discovered. They are collaborating with researchers
from the Swiss Tropical Institute and Hoffmann-LaRoche in Switzerland,
and Monash University in Australia.
The grant is provided by Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), a unique,
worldwide venture to develop new anti-malarial drugs.
In the 1840s, malaria was a major cause of 600 deaths among Mormons
living in Omahas Florence area. In 1914, an estimated 600,000 cases of
malaria occurred in United States. Today, malaria is rare in the U.S. due
to urbanization, improved sanitation, housing, nutrition and living standards,
as well as eradication of mosquitoes with chemicals beginning in the 1940s.
Though now the malaria epidemic seems like a world away, in countries
like Africa, Asia, Central and South America, the disease kills more than
1 million people each year, most of them children and pregnant women, according
to the World Health Organization (WHO). In addition, an estimated 300 to
500 million new cases of malaria are diagnosed each year. More than 90
percent of all malaria cases occur in sub-Saharan Africa, according to
the WHO.
Theres a worldwide sense of urgency to develop a new, affordable malaria
drug. In addition to the epidemic in Africa, the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention says malaria could reemerge in the U.S. due to the
malaria parasite building up resistance to current drugs, environmental
changes and increased air travel. American travelers and military personnel
who travel to countries where malaria is prevalent are at risk.
Jonathan Vennerstrom, Ph.D., associate professor of pharmaceutical sciences
and principle investigator of the grant, and Yuxiang Dong, Ph.D., post-doctoral
research associate, are conducting the research at UNMC. They say MMV is
unique because it brings together the private pharmaceutical industry and
the public sector expertise in malaria research at institutions such as
UNMC.
The team has developed a unique class of compounds that shows effectiveness
against the parasite that causes malaria in humans. The hope is the compounds
can be used to develop economical malaria drugs. UNMCs role in the venture
is to make the compounds, purify them and work with other team members
who test the safety and potential of the compounds. If successful, the
next step will be clinical trials to test for effectiveness in humans by
researchers in Africa and Southeast Asia.
MMV, an international public and privately funded organization, was
formed in 1999 to create a unique way for developing new anti-malarial
drugs that may otherwise not be developed due to cost. Initial co-sponsors
of venture are the WHO, the International Federation of Pharmaceutical
Manufacturers Associations, the World Bank, the Government of the Netherlands,
the UK Department for International Development, the Swiss Agency for Development
and Cooperation, the Global Forum for Health Research, the Rockefeller
Foundation and the global Roll Back Malaria Partnership.
The team has identified several anti-malarial compounds in a new class
of chemical structures. Its work has been called spectacular by the WHO.
The team also has applied for a patent on the compound.
We think we have something quite promising. Within the last two years,
weve shown our compounds are remarkably effective in animal models, said
Dr. Vennerstrom, whos been studying malaria for 15 years. He became aware
of the disease while growing up in Ethiopia while his parents taught at
mission schools.
Malaria kills more people than any other infectious disease, with the
exception of tuberculosis, said Dr. Vennerstrom who from the age of seven
until he was 16 years old, remembers taking antimalarial drugs to avoid
getting malaria. He and his parents, who are missionaries, lived for nine
years in Addis Ababa, the highlands of Ethiopia. Having had experience
growing up where malaria is a health threat gives you a perspective and
interest.
The disease, which takes an enormous toll in lives, medical costs and
lost labor, is caused by a parasite that is transmitted by the bite of
an infected Anopheles mosquito. The mosquitoes bite at nighttime, from
dusk to dawn.
The way drugs are typically brought to the market is through research
and development at private pharmaceutical companies. Because a large percentage
of drug development projects do not succeed, and because malaria drugs
offer minimal return on investment, drug research and development must
come in part from the public sector. Thats why MMV was established.
Dr. Dong, who was recently recruited, brings his chemistry expertise
to UNMC. He received a doctoral degree from Karlsruhe University in Germany,
one of the oldest and most revered technical education institutions in
Germany. Fortunately, my solid training in chemistry is useful in Omaha
and beyond.
Its unique to combine his wonderful chemistry expertise to come up
with potential new drugs to treat malaria, Dr. Vennerstrom said. One
thing we think about all the time is how the compounds workhow do they
exert their activity to kill malaria parasite. There are many things to
consider when designing a drug.