Ivermectin: repurposing an old drug to complement malaria vector control

• Published in: The Lancet infectious diseases Vol. 18; no. 6; pp. 584 - 585
• Main Author: Rabinovich, N Regina
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2018; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Animals; Anopheles stephensi; Artemisinins; Collaboration; Culicidae; Disease transmission; Double-Blind Method; Drug dosages; Drug Repositioning; Infectious diseases; Ivermectin; Kenya; Malaria; Mosquito Vectors; Mosquitoes; Quinolines; Tropical diseases; Vector-borne diseases; Kenya; Papua New Guinea
• ISSN: 1473-3099; 1474-4457
• DOI: 10.1016/S1473-3099(18)30176-2

When ivermectin's ability to kill the microfilaria of onchocerciasis was recognised it was developed for use in human beings, and through an ambitious donation programme launched by Ray Vagelos at Merck with the World Bank, more than 2·5 billion doses have been distributed in mass drug administration campaigns over the past 30 years. Repurposing a drug for a novel indication—in this case, as a complementary vector control tool to decrease malaria transmission—is not a minor endeavour in the context of modern requirements for efficacy, effectiveness, and safety. The WHO World Malaria Report released in 20178 shows the global effort is increasingly resource constrained, and that although there are 21 countries targeting malaria elimination by 2020 with current tools, another group of highly endemic countries have evidence that the advance against malaria has stalled, and in several cases is worsening.