Jumoke Olasunkanmi
Scientists with Glaxo Smith Kline’s biopharma have discovered a new strain of bacteria that is capable of inhibiting the growth of the malaria-causing plasmodium falciparum in mosquitos.
The Delftia tsuruhatensis bacteria codenamed Tres Cantos 1 (TC1) was found in the guts of Anopheles mosquitoes, which are known carriers of the parasite.
Malaria remains one of the major health challenges in many parts of the world particularly Nigeria which accounts for 27 per cent of malaria cases and 31 per cent of malaria-related deaths worldwide with 97 million cases and 300,000 deaths reported annually.
The discovery, which was done in collaboration with John Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, revealed that the TC1 bacteria is naturally occurring in the ecosystem, suggesting that its release will not be harmful to the environment.
Chief Global Health Officer at GSK, Thomas Breuer, in a statement said: “This discovery is the result of our ongoing commitment to malaria innovation at GSK, adding to the first-ever vaccine against malaria, and the first ever radical cure for P. vivax malaria.”
“An additional tool, Delftia tsuruhatensis Tres Cantos 1 (TC1), as an entirely novel approach for malaria control, has the potential to further reduce the huge burden of malaria in endemic countries and is more evidence that through deploying a range of prevention approaches, we may be able to finally eradicate this terrible disease,” he added.
