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Drugs are used in the diagnosis, alleviation, treatment, prevention or cure of disease. This is a book about drugs, how they came to be, and how they exert their ‘magic'. Today we have drugs to protect against infectious diseases, to alleviate aches and pains, to allow new organs to replace the old, and for brain functions to be modified. Yet, for the most part the manner by which drugs are developed and by whom remains a mystery. Drugs are more than just a pill or liquid and some have markedly altered history. The author has selected a few drugs – highlights representing milestones affecting our well-being and influencers of social change. The stories told are dramatic and include spectacular successes and dismal failures. And the people about whom these stories are told are both saints and sinners – selfless and conniving – bold and mercurial and shy and retiring loner. The drugs themselves mirror the diversity of their origin stories and the author assembles all sides of these fascinating stories.

In 2013, 200 million people were infected with malaria, resulting in over 584,000 deaths, with the potential to affect over half the world's population. Such is the widespread nature of malaria that it is increasingly believed only a vaccine will lead to its eradication.Although the first attempt at a vaccine was made a century ago, it is only in the last 30 years that real progress in testing has been made, in the hope of discovering a molecule that can provide long-lasting protection against the disease. In July 2015, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) announced that after 30 years of research it had received the green light from the European Medicines Agency for the world's first malaria vaccine, RTS, S, for use in African children aged 6 weeks to 17 months.This book chronicles the development of RTS, S — done in collaboration with the Walter Reed Army Institute for Research, the PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI) and funded in part by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation — as well as previous candidate vaccines. It also focusses on the continuing quest to find more effective vaccines against this continuing health crisis. Finally, it provides an easily understood background on recombinant DNA and monoclonal antibodies and places them in perspective to their contributions to malaria vaccine development.This book serves as a convenient and easily accessible source of information for students, teachers, microbiologists, parasitologists, physicians, clinicians and research funders.

The year 2012 marks the tenth anniversary of the announcement of the genome sequence of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum and that of its mosquito vector Anopheles. The genome sequences were a result of the Plasmodium falciparum Genome Project.This book covers in detail the biology of malaria parasites and the mosquitoes that transmit the disease, how the Genome Projects came into being, the people who created them, and the cadre of scientists who are attempting to see the promise of the Projects realized. The promise was: a more complete understanding of the genes of the parasite (and its vector) would provide a rational basis for the development of antimalarial drugs and vaccines, allow a better understanding of the regulation of the complex life cycle in the red blood and liver cells of the human, identify the genes the parasite uses to thwart the host immune response and the ways in which the parasite evades cure by drug treatments, as well as leading to more effective measures of control transmission. The hope was that cracking the genetic code of Plasmodium and Anopheles would reveal the biochemical Achilles heel of the parasite and its vector, leading to the development of novel drugs and better methods of control, and by finding the targets of protective immunity could result in the manufacture of effective vaccines.Through a historic approach, this book will allow for those new to the field, or those with insufficient background in the sciences, to have an easier entry point. Even scientists already working in the field may better appreciate how discoveries made in the past can impact the direction of future research.

Brings to life all the drama of the hunt for the still-elusive malaria vaccine, by celebrating the triumphs and documenting the failures. Serves as essential reading for anyone interested in infectious disease, public health, and public policy regarding malaria prevention and control.

A fascinating examination of epidemic diseases within a historical context. Examines the interrelationship between plagues and culture and details the ways this shaped the traditions and institutions of Western civilization.

An overview of the rapid and significant developments that have occurred in malaria research.