British scientists have discovered a new way to deal with serious sleeping sickness parasite in Africa say it could pave the way for the development of safe and effective drugs to treat it.
The scientists said - who published their study in the journal Nature - that new drugs could be ready for clinical trials on humans within 18 months.
Said Professor Paul Wyatt, director of the drug discovery program for Tropical Diseases at the University of Dundee, who led the research, which was done in mice, "This is one of the most important discoveries that have been reached in recent years in the field of drug discovery and development for neglected diseases."
The World Health Organization estimates that between 50 thousand to 70 thousand people are infected with sleeping sickness in sub-Saharan Africa - or African Trypanosomiasis - which affects humans and is spread by the bites of flies (tsetse) and if left untreated, it usually leads to death.
Wyatt said his team discovered the compound disrupts enzyme (.. MTN) primarily responsible for the survival and growth of the parasites that are injected into the body of the victim by the bite of the tsetse fly.
The disease - which is called (sleeping sickness) because of a bug that caused the sleep cycle by parasites infect the brain - two stages and the second phase begins when parasites penetrate the central nervous system.
The scientists said that it is difficult to practically treat the second stage in the poor, remote areas where many victims live.
التسميات
sleep