Promising single-dose malaria treatment advances toward pan-African clinical trial

by German Center for Infection Research

edited by Gaby Clark, reviewed by Andrew Zinin

Gaby Clark

Scientific Editor

Meet our editorial team
Behind our editorial process

Andrew Zinin

Lead Editor

Meet our editorial team
Behind our editorial process Editors' notes

This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

fact-checked

peer-reviewed publication

trusted source

proofread

The GIST Add as preferred source

Researchers at the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF) have developed a promising single-dose malaria treatment that could help address growing drug resistance and simplify treatment for patients. The four-drug combination treatment, known as SPAP, is now being prepared for large-scale clinical testing across Africa. Prof. Ghyslain Mombo-Ngoma, who was named to the 2026 TIME100 Health list in recognition of his contributions to global health research, is co-leading the project.

Despite major progress in recent decades, malaria continues to cause hundreds of thousands of deaths every year, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa. Drug resistance is increasing, and many patients struggle to complete treatment regimens that require medication over several days. While new antimalarial drugs are being developed, it may take years before they become widely available.

To address these challenges, researchers are investigating how to combine existing medicines more effectively. They have developed SPAP, a new single-dose combination therapy based on the four already approved antimalarial drugs sulfadoxine, pyrimethamine, artesunate and pyronaridine.

Results from a clinical trial conducted in Gabon suggest that SPAP could significantly improve malaria treatment. By targeting the malaria parasite through multiple mechanisms, SPAP has the potential to overcome two major barriers to malaria control: increasing drug resistance and poor adherence to multiday treatment schedules. The findings are published in the Malaria Journal.

"Efforts are underway to develop next-generation antimalarial medicines, but it will take many years for them to reach the market," explains Prof. Peter Kremsner, a malaria researcher at University Hospital Tübingen, regarding the objective of the study. "It is paramount to establish a regimen for an optimal use of combinations of existing medicines to cover this period."

Next step: A pan-African clinical trial

To validate the promising findings of the previous study, the researchers are planning a large, multi-country clinical trial in Africa to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of SPAP under real-world conditions. The potential of SPAP has also been recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO), which has included the therapy on its list of priority malaria medicines under development. Production of fixed-dose SPAP tablets for the pan-African clinical study is expected to begin this year. If the clinical trial confirms these results, SPAP could be a significant advance in malaria treatment in sub-Saharan Africa, offering a simpler, more effective therapy.

"This study addresses one of the most pressing challenges in malaria treatment: maintaining effectiveness while reducing the risk of resistance development," says co-project leader Prof. Ghyslain Mombo-Ngoma of the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM). "A single-dose regimen could considerably simplify treatment and improve access for patients in endemic regions," Mombo-Ngoma, who is also a group leader at the Centre de Recherches Médicales de Lambaréné (CERMEL) in Gabon, adds.

CERMEL is one of four African Partner Institutions with which DZIF scientists already have long-standing collaborations.

"The strength of this project lies in the close collaboration between research institutions across Africa and Europe," says Dr. Oumou Maïga Ascofaré, a group leader at BNITM and the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine (KCCR) in Ghana and the third principal investigator (PI) behind the pan-African clinical study. "Together, we aim to generate evidence that can support future malaria treatment strategies where they are needed most."

All three principal investigators are scientists in the DZIF research area Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Publication details

Ghyslain Mombo-Ngoma et al, Making the most of existing antimalarial medicines: a single dose cure with sulfadoxine–pyrimethamine plus artesunate–pyronaridine, Malaria Journal (2025). DOI: 10.1186/s12936-025-05559-4

Journal information: Malaria Journal

Key medical concepts

Malaria

Clinical categories

Infectious diseasesCommon illnesses & PreventionClinical pharmacology Provided by German Center for Infection Research Who's behind this story?

Gaby Clark

MA in English, copy editor since 2021 with experience in higher education and health content. Dedicated to trustworthy science news. Full profile →

Andrew Zinin

Master's in physics with research experience. Long-time science news enthusiast. Plays key role in Science X's editorial success. Full profile →

Citation: Promising single-dose malaria treatment advances toward pan-African clinical trial (2026, June 23) retrieved 24 June 2026 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-dose-malaria-treatment-advances-pan.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.