Finding the right single-dose tafenoquine to stop relapsing vivax malaria
Official title: Optimizing the dose of tafenoquine for the radical cure of Plasmodium vivax malaria in Southeast Asia
Funded at University of Oxford · NIH-11403677 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project compares single-dose amounts of tafenoquine to find a safe dose that prevents relapses of Plasmodium vivax malaria in children and adults in Southeast Asia.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Oxford NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Oxford, United Kingdom) |
| Project start | September 8, 2023 |
| Project end | August 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $117,395 |
| NIH project number | 3U01AI165321-03S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11403677 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are children and adults with confirmed Plasmodium vivax infection in Southeast Asia or Oceania who have adequate G6PD activity and no contraindications to 8-aminoquinolines.
✕Less likely to help
People with G6PD deficiency, pregnant or breastfeeding individuals, or those without vivax malaria are unlikely to benefit from participating.
What this research studies
If you have vivax malaria, researchers will enroll people diagnosed with the infection, check G6PD enzyme levels, and give single doses of tafenoquine at different weight-based amounts. The team combines new patient treatment data with re-analyses of past large trials to understand how dose affects relapse risk. Participants will be followed for months to see who has recurrent infections and who remains cured. Safety monitoring will focus on side effects and on hemolysis risk in people with reduced G6PD activity.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could identify a single, safe tafenoquine dose that prevents relapses and makes radical cure much easier to deliver.
How similar studies have gone: Large Phase 3 trials showed the currently recommended 300 mg dose had limited success, but pooled individual-patient data and prior dosing studies suggest higher weight-based doses may be more effective and have been tolerated in people with adequate G6PD activity.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Oxford
Oxford, United Kingdom Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Chu, Cindy S — University of Oxford
- Study coordinator: Chu, Cindy S
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.