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Researchers in Australia make Malaria breakthrough
Researchers in Australia have made a breakthrough in the fight against Malaria, a report on the BBC's website said on Monday.
- Agencies
- Published: 12:12 July 14, 2008
Melbourne: Researchers in Australia have made a breakthrough in the fight against Malaria, a report on the BBC's website said on Monday.
Scientists in Melbourne have discovered an adhesive that restricts the malarial parasite from being removed by the body's immune system.
If a single compound is removed, the process may be stopped, serving as a potential treatment to the disease.
The researchers at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research discovered eight proteins that facilitate the adhesive process.
Professor Alan Cowman, a member of the team, said targeting these proteins could help fight the disease.
"We essentially block the virulence or the capacity of the parasite to cause disease," he said.
Malaria kills more than a million people, many of whom are children, each year.
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