Novel malaria therapy to enter phase 1 trial

An investigational compound capable of detonating malaria parasites inside human blood cells is expected to undergo clinical trials, according to a press release.

The compound, SJ733, binds to and interferes with a malaria parasite protein that is designed to dispose of sodium, Spencer Knapp, PhD, chemistry professor in the department of chemistry and chemical biology at Rutgers University, said in the release. The compound’s interference produces a sodium build-up, which allows water to rush in and causes the parasite to explode inside the human blood cells.

Spencer Knapp

“That’s actually a very exciting development,” Knapp, who first prepared the compound in his lab, said in the release. “The drugs that are out there are starting to encounter resistance, so this is a new drug candidate just now entering trials. We don’t know how effective it will be yet in humans.”

The compound’s development is supported by a 5-year, $1.5 million grant from the NIH, and is part of a collaborative effort to combat malaria, which was responsible for 214 million infections worldwide and 440,000 deaths last year, the release said. Seventy percent of the mortalities occurred in children aged younger than 5 years.

Clinical trials assessing the safety and efficacy of the SJ733 compound could last up to 2 years, according to Knapp. During a phase 1 trial, an oral form of the compound will be assigned to healthy volunteers.

Disclosure: Infectious Disease News was unable to confirm relevant financial disclosures at the time of publication.

Photo Credit: Knapp