Natural compound-based medicines aiming to cure malaria
Official title: Natural Product Inspired Novel Antimalarials with Radical Cure Potential
Funded at Portland State University · NIH-11306570 · Data updated 2026-11-12
New drugs inspired by natural compounds that aim to kill malaria parasites at multiple stages for people at risk of malaria, including children.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Portland State University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Portland, United States) |
| Project start | April 4, 2023 |
| Project end | March 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $622,155 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AI175444-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11306570 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Future trial candidates would include people with confirmed malaria infection in regions where current drugs are failing, including children if and when age-appropriate trials are designed.
✕Less likely to help
People without malaria, those not eligible for clinical trials (for example due to severe unrelated illness or pregnancy), or those needing immediate standard treatment would not directly benefit from this research now.
What this research studies
If you or your child are at risk of malaria, researchers are developing a new class of medicines based on natural prodiginine compounds. In the lab they have shown activity against blood-stage parasites, liver-stage infection, and sexual-stage parasites that spread disease. The team is studying how the drug behaves in animals, optimizing how it is made cheaply, and testing safety and how long it stays in the body before any human trials. The work aims to produce a medicine that could work when current treatments fail due to resistance.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lead to a low-cost medicine that cures infections, prevents relapse, and works against drug-resistant malaria.
How similar studies have gone: Artemisinin-based drugs have been effective but face rising resistance, and this prodiginine-based approach is novel and has so far shown promise mainly in laboratory and animal studies rather than in humans.
Where this research is happening
-
Portland State University
Portland, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kancharla, Papireddy — Portland State University
- Study coordinator: Kancharla, Papireddy
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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.