Now, WHO is recommending widespread use of the Mosquirix, a new vaccine by GlaxoSmithKline which rouses a child’s immune system to thwart Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest of five malaria pathogens and the most prevalent in Africa. The vaccine is not just a first for malaria — it is the first developed for any parasitic disease.
In an interview with Uganda Radio Network this morning, Dr. Jimmy Opigo who heads the Malaria Control Programme at the Ministry of Health said promoting Artavol as prevention for malaria is wrong because the properties from which it’s made can only stay in the blood for a very short time something that puts its users at risk of resistance to artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT).
