Significant Scientific milestone: World's First Malaria Vaccine

The world's first malaria vaccine has been finally aproved after 30years of trial

   The European Medicines Agency gave a positive scientific opinion after assessing its safety and effectiveness.
It represents a 'green light' for the Mosquirix jab, developed by GlaxoSmithKline.

    The World Health Organization will consider later this year whether to recommend it for children, among whom trials have yielded mixed results.
    'Dream come true' Mosquirix, otherwise known as the RTS,S vaccine, is the first against a parasitic infection in humans. Dr Ripley Ballou, head of research at GSK vaccines, said: "This is a hugely significant moment. I've been working on this vaccine for 30 years and this is a dream come true."
   The company has not revealed the price of the vaccine, but
has pledged not to make a profit from it.

    The world's first malaria vaccine has cleared one of the final hurdles prior to being approved for use in Africa.
    Malaria kills around 584,000 people a year worldwide, most of them children under five in sub-Saharan Africa.
    It has been designed specifically to combat malaria infection in children in Africa and will not be licensed for travellers.
    Earlier this year, final results of a clinical trial in seven African countries yielded mixed results.
    The best protection was among children aged five to 17 months who received three doses of the vaccine a month apart, plus a booster dose at 20 months.