Vaccines, a common and vital public health tool, save
the lives of children, travellers and others. Our available
vaccines target viruses and bacteria. Malaria parasites are
protozoa that have a complicated and transformative life
cycle. Developing vaccines against more simple organisms
has not been easy; a malaria vaccine is a huge challenge.
In fact Mosquirix, otherwise known as the recombinant
Plasmodium falciparum malaria vaccine (RTS,S),
‘is the first against a parasitic infection in humans’.1
Therefore, after 20 years of research and testing, we
are very close to having the first vaccine against malaria
available. GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals (GSK), and the
PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI), with support
from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation have led the
development of Mosquirix. As a major step in the development
of the RTS,S vaccine, ‘The European Medicines
Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human
Use (CHMP) has adopted a positive scientific opinion for
Mosquirix (for Plasmodium falciparum…), for use outside
the European Union (EU)’.2
The EMA says that next steps
include development of guidelines ‘defined by the World
Health Organization (WHO) and regulatory authorities in
the non-EU countries where the vaccine would be used’.
How did we get to this point in the development of
the vaccine and how will it become incorporated into
efforts to eliminate the disease?