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Vaccine a breakthrough in Indonesia's war against malaria
Currently, Indonesia is facing the growing P. vivax malaria burden, which accounts 33 percent of total cases, according to Health Ministry data.
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A health worker measures the dosage of malaria vaccine in Ndhiwa, Homabay County, western Kenya on Sept. 13, 2019 during the launch of a malaria vaccine in Kenya. (AFP/Brian Ogoro)
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vaccine aimed at preventing malaria is currently going through extensive testing to reinvigorate the fight against the mosquito-borne disease in Indonesia. A joint National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) team said in its newest report that it had entered the Phase 2 clinical trial of the vaccine, during which it administered a three-dose immunization regime to volunteers.
More than 340 Indonesian Army soldiers received three doses of the PfSPZ Vaccine, a candidate malaria vaccine developed by Maryland-based biotechnology company Sanaria Inc., before their deployment—scheduled for this month —to malaria-ridden Papua.
The clinical trial aims to assess the ability of the vaccine to prevent malaria in populations that are susceptible to this deadly parasitic infection. The team comprise researchers from the Eijkman Research Center for Molecular Biology, the Eijkman-Oxford Clinical Research Unit (EOCRU) and the University of Indonesia’s School of Medicine (FKUI).
Actually, the current control interventions, such as insecticide treated bed nets, early diagnosis and prompt treatment, are deemed effective in combating malaria. As of April 2022, about 70 percent of the country’s 514 regencies and cities had been declared malaria free.
So, why is it still so important to develop a malaria vaccine?
One lesson the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us is that vaccination is highly effective when it comes to preventing severe illness and death. As there have been some setbacks in the malaria elimination campaign due to the pandemic, there should be a breakthrough tool to fill the gap left by the current interventions.
With surveillance measures relaxing during the pandemic, some areas have seen a resurgence of malaria cases. Drug-resistant malaria parasites have become a growing threat, and most people are unaware there are more than one parasite species causing malaria in our country.
