Long Acting Injectable Dual Plasmepsin Inhibitor Antimalarial Program

MSD and WEHI are receiving funding from Wellcome for antimalarial drug discovery research on a novel class of dual targeting plasmepsin inhibitors. This work resulted in a development compound (MK-7602) which is in P1 clinical trials. During the research programme the team identified chemical matter that is amenable to long-acting administration. This was not a focus but only a stretch objective for the team. The profound potential for a long-acting antimalarial formulation that can give extended protection against infection will be important for malaria elimination and eradication programs and necessitates further investigation and investment. The team will focus lead-optimisation medicinal chemistry, drug metabolism and formulation efforts aimed at discovering a dual plasmepsin IX/X inhibitor suitable for use as a long-acting injectable (LAI) for malaria prophylaxis. The goal is to identify a development candidate that would be suitable for a single injection providing 3 months of infection protection. An upside of this effort will be the potential for ChemoVaccination of subjects with long-lasting immunological protection from infection for up to a year.