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Published online 8 December 2008 | 456, 680-681 (2008) | doi:10.1038/456680a

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Malaria vaccine gets shot in the arm from tests

Promising results pave the way for a vaccine candidate to undergo full-blown trials across Africa.

Brendan Maher

A long-anticipated candidate vaccine for malaria may be more than 50% effective at preventing the disease in African children, say results published this week in The New England Journal of Medicine1,2. The work sets the scene for phase III clinical trials to start within the next few months.

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  • I was glad the study by Abdulla et al was metioned although I found it disturbing to see the researchers and this author valuing efficacy over safety. Abdulla and colleagues reported a vaccine-induced incident rate of approximately 25% including one death following seizure in the RTS,S group. The authors called this "promising," but I would be hesitant to implement any vaccine that would make 1 in 4 infants sick. Doc Edwards, http://blog.guerillahealthreport.com

    • 11 Dec, 2008
    • Posted by: John Edwards